U.S. Gulf: Potash barges were put between $345-$355/st FOB.
Eastern Cornbelt: The potash market in the Eastern Cornbelt was steady at $390-$400/st FOB regional warehouses.
Western Cornbelt: Potash continued to be quoted in the $385-$400/st FOB range, with the low in southern Missouri and the upper end in Iowa. One contact quoted the red granular market at the $395/st FOB level in his area last week.
California: Muriate of potash pricing was flat and untested at $500-$510/st FOB and $510-$520/st DEL in California.
Granular sulfate of potash pricing had reportedly slipped to $650-$655/st FOB in California, down $10-$15/st from last report, with standard grade SOP quoted at $638/st FOB on a spot basis. Delivered SOP was pegged in the $635-$645/st range in the state.
The K-Mag market was reported at the $430/st FOB level out of warehouses from Fresno south.
The dealer market for crystalline potassium nitrate was unchanged at $950/st FOB for bulk and $1,020/st FOB for bags.
Pacific Northwest: Potash pricing continued to slip. Sources quoted the regional market at $455-$460/st FOB and $450-$460/st rail-DEL in the region, down another $15-$30/st from last report.
The potash market FOB Utah mines was quoted at $370-$375/st, well below reference levels in the $415-$420/st FOB range.
The K-Mag market was reported at $461-$481/st FOB in the Pacific Northwest, with sources reporting continued tight supplies.
Western Canada: The regional potash market was steady at $460/mt FOB Saskatchewan mines to Canadian customers, with pricing out of Western Canada warehouse locations reported in the $468-$491/mt FOB range, depending on location and supplier.
India: The chaos in the potash industry, combined with the weakening rupee, is leading Indian buyers to defer purchases.
The Indian government maintained the official selling price of $277/mt to the farmers, but with a subsidy of $210/mt instead of last year’s $268/mt.
Besides India, China is also holding off on its potash purchases until the global market settles down. During the first eight months of this year, India imported 1.9 million mt, or about 48 percent of what is required under its contracts.
Even before the Uralkali split hit the market, India was considering taking fewer tons than expected because of the falling value of the rupee.
While demand for potash is expected to be strong in India, it does not have the political baggage that faces urea importers.