U.S. Gulf:
NOLA ammonium sulfate barges were reported to have traded as low as $420/st FOB, down from the week-ago $450-$465/st FOB. Reports of $410/st FOB were not confirmed at press time.
Eastern Cornbelt:
Granular ammonium sulfate prices reportedly slipped to $480-$495/st FOB on the low end in the Eastern Cornbelt in the wake of the June 30 announcement from AdvanSix that it was offering Midwest river terminal pricing at the $480/st FOB level for tons shipped on July 15 or after.
Sources confirmed new ammonium sulfate sales in the South Central region for as low as $455-$460/st FOB at midweek.
Western Cornbelt:
Granular ammonium sulfate pricing slipped to $475-$495/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt for fill tons, with reports of prompt tons still offered in the $550-$560/st FOB range.
California:
Ammonium sulfate was quoted at $670-$700/st FOB in California.
Pacific Northwest:
Ammonium sulfate pricing was quoted at $620-$670/st FOB or DEL in the Pacific Northwest, with the low for standard and the high for granular. No fill programs were out yet in the region, but some sources reported rumors of 3Q fill offers landing in the upper-$500s/st in mid-July.
Western Canada:
The Western Canada ammonium sulfate market was quoted at C$500/mt DEL for the latest fill offers, down from C$900-$925/mt DEL for the last prompt prices in June.
China:
Sources reported a continued slide in prices. Caprolactam-grade amsul exports from China are now pegged at $230-$255/mt FOB.
Sources said reduced output in China because of a general industrial slowdown is being offset by reduced demand from Southeast Asian buyers. The buyers are stepping away from the market because of a slower global economy, and are demanding fewer of the products the Asian producers turn out. In turn, they do not need as much from input suppliers.
January-May imports of ammonium sulfate by Thailand were reported at 167,000 mt by Trade Data Monitor, down about 12% from the 191,000 mt imported during the same period in 2021. China dominated the sourcing with 123,000 mt.
May 2022 imports were reported at 56,000 mt, down from the 68,000 mt imported in May 2021, with tons split almost evenly between China at 29,000 mt and Taiwan at 25,000 mt.
Brazil:
The ammonium sulfate price remained steady at $340-$370/mt CFR. The Rondonópolis price tightened to $470-$505/mt FOB ex-warehouse.
Imports for the first half of the year were reported at 2 million mt by Trade Data Monitor. This is up about 19% from the 1.7 million mt imported during the first semester of 2021. Chinese product dominated the imports with 1.8 million mt.
Second-quarter 2022 imports were reported at 713,000 mt, up from the 535,000 mt imported during the same period in 2021. June 2022 imports were pegged at 197,000 mt, down from the 332,000 mt imported in June 2021. China, as usual, dominated the market with 172,000 mt.