Spot market prices within the US domestic energy pipe markets are largely stable, week-over-week, despite mills’ desire to push prices up. The market as a whole is still slow, sources note, adding that attempts to firm pricing is less about demand, and more about mills’ higher input costs. For example, US hot rolled coil prices are still on an uptrend, and if scrap trends up next month, as expected, this could push coil prices even higher.
And while rig counts are rising, they’re still “leaps and bounds away from where they were.”
“The rig count used to be over 900, but it fell sharply,” a source said. “As of last week, the rig count was tallied at 312, but all in all it’s not sustainable. Especially when you consider that the oil rig count is still below 250.”
Year-over-year oil exploration is down by 65%, another source pointed out, adding that until the airline industry fully recovers from COVID-19-spurred declines in travel, the energy markets will continue to suffer.
For now, ex-mill pricing is steady week-over-week. Spot market pricing for US domestic API X52 line pipe remains at or above $42.50 cwt. ($937/mt or $850/nt) ex-mill, whereas the most commonly heard spot market prices for J55 ERW casing remains at or above $45 cwt. ($992/mt or $900/nt), ex-mill.
“The mills are trying to get prices up, because their input costs are up, but if someone shows up with an order, the mills aren’t going to turn it away,” a source concluded.