Prices, order activity an inquiries within the US domestic and import Grade A electric residence weld (ERW) black plain end (BPE) standard pipe are unchanged since our last report two weeks ago, despite some having believed that if the DOC ruled to move forward with the line pipe case at “full steam ahead”, that some offshore producers could shift their focus and would begin courting buyers within this market segment.
“There really hasn’t been too much going on with the standard pipe market for quite some time,” according to one Texas-based source. According to the Steel Monitoring Import and Analysis (SIMA) Dec. 2 data shows that the most significant US standard pipe import tonnages came from the United Arab Emirates, at 6,597 mt (license data), with the second most significant importer being China, at 3,473 mt (license data).
Prices are unchanged across the board since our last two weeks ago. Within the US domestic spot market, the most commonly reported transaction range has continued to hold at of $47.00-$48.00 cwt. ($1,036-$1,058/mt or $940-$960/nt) ex-Midwest mill, while futures offers from Taiwan remain at approximately of $38.50-$39.50 cwt. ($849-$871/mt or $770-$790/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf Coast ports. Vietnamese offers are still trending approximately $0.50 cwt. ($11/mt or $10/nt) higher; while Korean offers are also still available for $2.00 cwt. ($44/mt or $40/nt) above the Taiwanese range, all DDP loaded truck in US Gulf coast ports.