US domestic spot prices for J55 electric resistance welded (ERW) oil country tubular goods (OCTG) casing have held steady since our last report a week ago, with offers still being reported in the range of $63.00-$65.00 cwt. ($1,389-$1,430/mt or $1,260-$1,280/nt) ex-Midwest mill. Sources close to SteelOrbis continue to report that both inquiries and purchasing activity continue to be up month-on-month from July, when the typical summer slowdown hit the OCTG market especially hard while the US rig count suffered major declines.
Of greater interest, though, seems to be the offshore price wars on import J55 ERW OCTG casing offers, as offshore mills are now aggressively competing for orders. Import offers from Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam are all now being seen in the range of $46.00-$47.00 cwt. ($1,014-$1,036/mt or $920-$940/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. This reflects a $1.50-$2.00 cwt. ($33-$44/mt or $30-$40/nt) drop in pricing, across the board, within the past two weeks. Several sources indicated that these pricing dips have prompted them to place orders, with some citing a belief that import pricing may have bottomed out.