Buying remains sluggish in the Italian welded pipe market amid the weakening of activity in key welded pipe-using sectors. Demand from local and European buyers has been affected by the continued slump in the construction sector and deteriorating operating conditions in other sectors such as automotive and metal goods. Domestic and export prices of Italian welded pipes, on the whole, have remained within the previous price range, with only the lower end moving down by €20/mt ($27/mt) over the past month. Offers of Turkish pipes for Italy have decreased by €10-20/mt ($13-27/mt), while quotations of Bulgarian material have declined by a maximum of €10/mt ($13/mt) over the period under review.
Demand for welded pipes in Italy and the EU is expected to remain sluggish until late 2013. Italian welded pipe producers will probably be forced to cut offer prices soon in light of the weak economic outlook and the anticipated drop in prices for raw materials.
Current local prices for Italian welded pipes of 2"-6" size with wall thickness of 2.0-4.0 mm as per EN 10219 made from base steel grade S235JR HR coils are at about €600-620/mt ($798-825/mt) ex-works from Arvedi Tubi Acciaio, while offers from Marcegaglia are being given to local customers at €550-600/mt ($732-798/mt) ex-works. Prices are shown on actual weight basis and excluding 21 percent VAT. Domestic prices for standard-size precision welded tubes, E235 grade as per EN 10305-3, are at about €690-700/mt ($918-931/mt) ex-works. Quotations of galvanized welded pipes from Italian producers are in the range of €700-720/mt ($931-958/mt) ex-works.
Export quotations of Italian 2"-6" welded pipes as per EN 10219 are at about €580-650/mt ($771-865/mt) FOB (transportation by sea) or €550-620/mt ($732-825/mt) ex-works (transportation overland). In particular, offer prices for Spain are in the range of €580-650/mt ($771-865/mt) CPT.
Offers from Turkish suppliers of industrial welded pipes with 2-4 mm wall thickness made from HR coils are being given at an average of €530-550/mt ($705-732/mt) CFR to Italy and at €545-570/mt ($725-758/mt) CFR to Spain.
Offers of Bulgarian welded pipes to the Spanish market are standing at an average of €600-620/mt ($798-825/mt) CPT on theoretical weight basis.
€1 = $1.33