U.S. Gulf: Sources last week were calling the barge market weaker at $355-$360/st FOB. With some Belarusian imports already at NOLA and more on the way, the matter became a hotter topic of conversation last week (see pg. 1) now that TFI has advised its members to “act with caution.”
So far, Belarusian imports have not shown up in U.S. import figures for the fertilizer year, but potash imports are already up. July-December imports were up 19 percent, to 5.74 million st from the year-ago 4.83 million st, with December up a whopping 53 percent, to 1.02 million st from the year-ago 664,368 st. The extra imports might have been enough to impact prices regardless of what Belarusian tons have in store.
The December increase was due to Canada, with imports from north of the border at 914,816 st, up from the year-ago 575,681 st. Canadian imports for July-December were 4.85 million st, up from the year-ago 4.47 million st.
Other countries with significant year-to-date increases were Chile at 140,322 st versus 54,313 st, Russia at 410,340 st versus 221,685 st, and Israel at 304,965 st versus 72,865 st.
Eastern Cornbelt: Potash remained at $400-$417/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, depending on grade and location, with the upper end reported for white granular tons.
Western Cornbelt: Potash was reported at $405-$417/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the top of the range reflecting reference levels for white granular tons. Sources reported the bulk of pricing quotes for red potash in the $405-$410/st FOB range last week.
The Catoosa potash market remained at $400-$405/st FOB.
California: Potash was unchanged at $518-$535/st FOB warehouses in California, depending on grade and location, with the low for 60 percent and the upper end for 62 percent granular or soluble. Delivered potash remained at $525-$535/st in the state.
Crystalline potassium nitrate was steady at $950/st FOB for bulk and $1,020/st FOB for bags.
Sulfate of potash (SOP) remained in tight supply at $722-$735/st FOB in California.
Pacific Northwest: Potash remained at $461-$475/st FOB and roughly $480-$495/st DEL in the Pacific Northwest, depending on grade and location. The potash market FOB Utah mines was steady as well at $420/st FOB for 60 percent standard and $425/st FOB for 60 percent granular.
The SOP Magnesia market was reported at a firm $481/st FOB in the Pacific Northwest “if you can get it,” with several sources talking of very tight supplies.
The sulfate of potash (SOP) market was also extremely tight and allocated in the region. One source put the market solidly in the $768-$778/st FOB range for new sales, and said this is typically the period for heavy SOP applications in parts of the Columbia Valley. “Due to the high price of SOP, we are seeing a dramatic switch to MOP,” he said.
Western Canada: The regional potash market in Western Canada remained at $470-$480/mt FOB inland warehouses, with the Saskatchewan mine price reported at $445-$450/mt FOB to Canadian customers.
Russia: Uralkali has reconfirmed that it will continue to granulate MOP at all of its production sites at the usual output rate, including Solikamsk #2. It said no interruptions of supply to the U.S. market are foreseen.
Uralkali noted that it is a long-term, consistent supplier of granular potash to the North American market, and it will continue to ship traditional volumes to the U.S. While potash prices have declined since the announcement that BPC will resume shipments to the U.S., Uralkali says it remains committed to its loyal U.S. customers. Uralkali continues to see strong demand for the spring season, citing early pla