AMMONIA
AMMONIA
U.S. Gulf/Tampa: There was nothing new to report on these markets last week, except that forthcoming negotiations for April are now expected to be more contentious. Buyers are reportedly sensing weakness in nitrogen products overall, and see no reason why theirs ?Çô ammonia ?Çô should be any different.
Eastern Cornbelt: Ammonia pricing out of regional terminals continued to be reported in the $415-$425/st FOB range to the dealer for spot tons. Sources continued to report little if any fieldwork taking place in the region due to wet field conditions, and little new buying activity to test the markets.
Western Cornbelt: Anhydrous ammonia remained at $375-$410/st FOB regional terminals, with the low in Nebraska and the upper numbers out of Missouri and Iowa terminals. Sources reported no ammonia movement taking place yet in the region, and no new sales to test the market.
One central Missouri source talked of “knee-deep mud” in his location last week, so fieldwork was on the backburner. Some fertilizer applications were going down on grass in parts of southern Missouri last week thanks to 60-degree temperatures and sunshine, but wet weather was once again in store for the weekend.
Southern Plains: The ammonia market was quoted at $325-$360/st FOB in the Southern Plains, with the low out of regional production points and the upper end out of pipeline terminals. Dealers were starting to see some fertilizer movement on wheat and preplant ground at mid-month, but many areas remained wet. “It’s not like what you’d expect for mid-March,” said one contact.
Black Sea: The lack of excitement in the market is holding prices in the $380s/mt FOB. The industry seems to be waiting to see what happens in the April talks for Tampa deliveries.
Sources report the Ukrainian plants are still not back online. One trader said the stagnation of the market might be making the producers nervous about opening and then flooding the market with more material and lowering the price.
Middle East: Arab producers remain fully booked. The only cloud on their pricing horizon is the repeatedly lower prices offered by Iran. One source noted that every time the producers see an opportunity to move the price up, Iran makes a deal that undercuts that effort. One producer representative said earlier this month that the price could have gone past $400/mt FOB if it were not for Iran.
An Iranian cargo picked up by Yara earlier this month is now bound for Northwest Europe. Sources figure Yara will use the material in its own system rather than offer it on the spot market.
Asia: The Mitsui KPA plant in Indonesia remained down last week for routine maintenance. Sources estimate the plant will begin re-start procedures this week. Once the KPA facility is back to full operation, industry observers expect to see the Mitsubishi KPI plant go down for maintenance. Only rarely are the two facilities down at the same time. Often the two companies will engage in swap deals while one plant is down.
The demand for ammonia in the rest of Asia remains strong. South Korean and Taiwanese buyers continue to ask for as many tons as suppliers can send.
UREA
UREA
U.S. Gulf: While some sellers were quoting $318/st FOB last week, sources were reporting actual trades within the $314-$317/st FOB range. As with other nitrogens, large buyers want to see more inland movement before they start buying barge quantities.
Eastern Cornbelt: The granular urea market was quoted at $350-$365/st FOB in the region.
Western Cornbelt: Granular urea was pegged at $345-$365/st FOB in the regi