Sources within the US domestic and import API X-52 line pipe markets continue to be “historically firm,” as domestic ex-mill pricing, which today is trending between $67.50-$70.00 cwt. ($1488-$1543/mt or $1350-$1400/nt), ex-mill, is substantially up from levels seen during the same reporting period in 2017, when US API X-52 was trending between $56-$58 cwt. ($1235-$1279/mt or $1120-$1160/nt), ex-mill.
Drilling activity and oil prices remain robust, sources note, adding that news reports last week indicating the US exported an average of 2.3 million barrels of oil per day is a positive sign.
On the other hand, other sources say the rapidly approaching May 1 deadline for the Trump administration to make additional decisions with regard to the Section 232 tariff exemption list could be a “game changer.”
“We’re all just holding on and bracing ourselves for the announcement,” a source said. “But what we all expect, is that whatever the administration announces on May 1 will be fluid, and whatever decision comes down first could undergo a few rounds of revisions before we get a final draft.”