Central Florida: A round of showers and thunderstorms brought localized rainfall of up to 4 inches in the Southeast at mid-month. Logistics difficulties improved but were still present, especially for railcar placement, and remained a factor in buyers’ decision making.
With rail shipments from the Central Florida market still experiencing indeterminate delays, sellers reported flagging interest. Conditions improved to where sellers were finally able to catch up on late orders, sources said, but the delays of the recent past made some customers hesitant to immediately renew commitments.
Shipping by truck remained the most timely method out of Florida, and truck-loaded DAP was offered at $465/st FOB with no sales. The posted price for Mosaic DAP was unchanged at $460/st FOB, with MAP offered for $20/st FOB more.
The price range in the Central Florida DAP market was static at $460-$465/st FOB, based on offers and Mosaic’s posted price. Though no sales were uncovered, MAP was quoted at a $10-$15/st FOB premium to DAP.
U.S. Gulf: Transactions were light on the river due to a combination of the shortened holiday week, shifting focus toward the summer business cycle, and the arrival and discharge of a mostly presold Koch vessel from Morocco.
Barges already loaded and floating continued to command a healthy premium over those with load dates later in April, but reported transactions showed a definite downward price trend as the deadline for spring fertilizer application loomed closer.
Truly prompt transactions were quoted up to $490/st FOB for DAP, but some sources put Thursday offers at a “weak” $485/st FOB, claiming barges could be had for lower bids.
Much of the focus turned to paper trading for May, June, and July loading. May DAP transactions occurred in a range of $425-$435/st FOB, while a July barge was bought at $413/st FOB. July offers were quoted at $425/st FOB.
Conditions on the river continued to improve, and warmer weather in the Midwest prompted hopes that the first fertilizer barge would arrive at Twin Cities terminals as soon as April 19-20.
Work by the U.S. Coast Guard to replace navigation buoys on the Illinois River was suspended due to high water levels. An estimated 90 percent were lost over the winter due to ice, but buoys had so far been replaced from the mouth of the Illinois through Peoria Lake.
Reports indicated that Lock 18 on the Upper Mississippi River near Gladstone, Ill., would be closed during daylight hours on May 13, 15, and 19 for chamber repairs, and delays of 12-15 hours were experienced at the St. Louis-area Melvin Price Lock, where the main chamber was expected to remain closed through Aug. 12.
On the Ohio River, Dashields Lock will be closed from May 12 through June 6, and a towing restriction of 15 barges was in place for southbound transit through the Olmstead Locks and Dam Replacement Project, near the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
In the Gulf, delays of 10-13 hours persisted at Industrial Lock in the New Orleans area due to high river traffic.
As for crop prices, corn contracts for May 2014 clocked in at $4.9475/bushel as of 4:00 p.m. on April 17, a fall from the previous week’s $5.0125/bushel. July 2014 corn was $5.005/bushel, a decrease from $5.0725/bushel the week before, and corn for December 2014 was $4.9675/bushel, down from $5.05/bushel at last report.
The May 2014 soybean price rose to $15.14/bushel from $14.8225/bushel a week earlier, and soybeans for July 2014 were put at $15.0225/bushel, up from $14.655/bushel at last report. Soybeans for November 2014 were posted at $12.3925/bushel, an increase from $12.255/bushel a week earlier.
Wheat for May 2014 was $6.9125/bushel, up from the previous week’s $6.6225/bushel. July 2014 wheat was also up at $6.99/