Order activity in the US domestic energy pipe market has been relatively steady since the end of February, although demand for J55 electric resistance welded (ERW) oil country tubular goods (OCTG) casing is far exceeding the demand for line pipe.
So far in March, domestic activity for ERW OCTG casing is light, but still consistently improving over what was a particularly slow February, and is predicted to continue to rise over the coming months. For now though, US domestic spot prices are unchanged from levels reported two weeks ago and still range from $65.00-$67.00 cwt. ($1,433-$1,477/mt or $1,300-$1,340/nt) ex-mill.
Line pipe demand activity however, does not appear to be growing, and order activity remains soft both domestically and offshore. US domestic spot prices of API X42 ERW line pipe currently range from $59.00-$61.00 cwt. ($1,301-$1,345/mt or $1,180-$1,120/nt) ex-West Coast mill, but many continue to keep inventory levels low, and so order activity in late February/early March has been solely to fill inventory holes.
Offshore, import offers of energy pipe are only garnering little interest; line pipe order activity is still lackluster, while OCTG casing demand offshore appears to be slowly growing. Korean and Taiwanese API X42 ERW line pipe continues to be the most competitive offers for US buyers, ranging from $51.50-$53.50 cwt. ($1,135-$1,157/mt or $1,030-$1,050/nt) duty-paid FOB loaded truck in US Gulf ports, but orders being placed are minimal as buyers had placed significant orders back in December, and are now sitting on the sidelines and waiting for those orders to arrive.
On the ERW OCTG casing side, inquiries into the Korean and Taiwanese offers in the $55.00-$57.00 cwt. ($1,213-$1,257/mt or $1,100-$1,140/nt) duty-paid FOB loaded truck in US Gulf ports range have increased in the past few weeks, and even higher offshore prices -Korean prices are expected to increase approximately $2.50 cwt. ($55/mt or $50/nt) by the end of March-are not expected to significantly affect order activity.