Domestic steel mills have been rolling out rapid-fire price increases for the past few days, but sources close to SteelOrbis say that even if US scrap and HRC prices start to firm, it’s unlikely to help energy pipe prices in the short term.
“It will not have much effect on pipe until inventories clear,” a source said. “With demand still soft most distributers are still trying to move inventory to raise cash which means they are willing to negotiate.”
As such, this week’s pricing trend is set at “stable, but flexible.”
As with last week, in-stock US domestic J55 ERW OCTG casing is still being head in the range of $43.00-$45.00 cwt. ($948-$992/mt or $860-$900/nt), ex-mill, whereas Korean material continues to be offered at approximately $44.00-$45.00 cwt. ($970-$992/mt or $880-$900/nt), DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports.
Further, “official” US domestic market prices for stock API-X52 line pipe have remained in the range of $41.50-$42.50 cwt. ($915-$937/mt or $830-$850/nt), ex-mill, whereas prices for Mexican material continue to trend in the range of $44.00-$45.00 cwt. ($970-$992/mt or $880-$900/nt), FOB Texas.
All pricing, sources note, is flexible and dependent on how badly the seller needs cash flow.