Pricing for US domestic API-X52 line pipe continues to trend at $70.00-$72.50 cwt. ($1543-$1598/mt or $1400-$1450/nt) ex-mill, but buyers are still questioning whether current pricing, which is at a record high, could be vulnerable to correction.
Sources close to SteelOrbis have noted a strong belief that US HRC pricing has reached its peak, and combined with early predictions for May scrap prices, which may have the market trending at sideways to soft sideways, the trends will prevent prices from going higher.
The third wild card, sources say, relates to the still-pending Section 232 exemptions list, which is expected to be resolved by the end of the month.
“There’s still a lot of uncertainty about the fate of the market, but the big positive in the past week is that the market is a lot less chaotic than it has been,” a source said.