Sentiment remains bleak for the US domestic J55 ERW OCTG casing market, with sources saying their main focus is to “get this year finished.” While mill prices haven’t moved in the last week, sources say service center prices are “all over the place,” although buyers are largely remaining on the sidelines. The situation is expected to continue even once US domestic scrap prices settle lower as expected this month. Adding to the tepid market forecast is a continuing downtrend in US rig counts, plus slowly downticking oil prices.
Current prices points are stable week-on-week at the mill level, with spot prices for US domestic J55 ERW OCTG casing remaining in the “official range” of $50-$55 cwt. ($1,102-$1,213/mt or $1,000-$1,100/nt) ex-mill.