The Italian welded pipe market has not seen any positive changes over the past month. Business activity of both local and foreign buyers has remained at minimal levels due to the summer lull in most European countries and weak consumption of industrial sectors, including the construction sector. In this situation, Italian welded pipe suppliers have not been inclined to revise their prices. In the import segment, quotations of Turkish material have mostly remained unchanged, while offers of Bulgarian pipes for Italy have decreased by around €60/mt ($79/mt) over the period under review. Market participants do not anticipate a rebound in the market in the coming month as demand will likely weaken during the summer holidays. However, suppliers expect to achieve a price increase at the end of August amid stronger demand from end-users.
Current local prices for Italian welded pipes of 2"-6" size with wall thickness of 2.0-4.0 mm as per EN 10219 made from base steel grade S235JR HR coils are at about €580-600/mt ($760-786/mt) ex-works from Arvedi Tubi Acciaio, while offers from other producers are being given to local customers at €520-550/mt ($681-721/mt) ex-works. Prices are shown on actual weight basis and excluding 21 percent VAT. Domestic prices for standard-size precision welded tubes, E235 grade as per EN 10305-3 (not normalized), are at about €650-670/mt ($852-878/mt) ex-works. Quotations of galvanized welded pipes made from steel grade S235JR from Italian producers are in the range of €620-650/mt ($812-852/mt) ex-works.
Export quotations of Italian 2"-6" welded pipes as per EN 10219 are at about €550-630/mt ($721-825/mt) FOB (transportation by sea) or €550-600/mt ($721-786/mt) ex-works (transportation overland). In particular, offer prices for Spain are in the range of €580-630/mt ($760-825/mt) CPT.
Offers from Turkish suppliers of industrial welded pipes with 2-4 mm wall thickness made from HR coils are being given at an average of €520-540/mt ($681-708/mt) CFR to Italy and at €530-550/mt ($694-721/mt) CFR to Spain.
Offers of Bulgarian welded pipes to the Spanish market are standing at an average of €510-570/mt ($668-747/mt) CPT on theoretical weight basis.
€1 = $1.31