With inventories stacked high, US buyers aren't rushing to make any purchases, creating some weakness in US domestic J55 electric resistance welded (ERW) oil country tubular goods (OCTG) casing spot prices. Although US spot prices are still flat in the range of $66.00-$67.00 cwt. ($1,455-$1,477/mt or $1,320-$1,340/nt) ex-Midwest mill, SteelOrbis sources indicate that with so much domestic competition, and less expensive unsold import OCTG widely available, spot prices are under downward pressure, and selective price cutting at some US mills is becoming more widespread.
Import J55 ERW OCTG casing prices in the US are also under some pressure to drop due to competition as well as softening flat rolled steel prices in the Far East. Import activity in the US is quiet, as it has been over the past month, due to high US buyer inventories, as well as anticipation of some softening in import prices looming. For now, though, Korean offer prices are unchanged in the range of $49.50-$51.50 cwt. ($1,091-$1,135/mt or $990-$1,030/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, with Taiwanese offer prices about $0.50 cwt. ($11/mt or $10/nt) lower. And although flat steel prices domestically in Turkey have increased, that hasn't affected the pipe market just yet, and Turkish offer prices to the US remain at about $48.75 cwt. ($1,075/mt or $975/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. Meanwhile, offers from Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines are $49.00-$49.50 cwt. ($1,080-$1,091/mt or $980-$990/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports.