US Gulf/Tampa:
Tampa ammonia for November stands at $1,150/mt CFR. With expectations that more European ammonia plants will come back up due to lower natural gas prices, however, sources said Tampa pricing for December will likely be under pressure.
Eastern Cornbelt:
Ammonia pricing remained at $1,300-$1,400/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the low at Lima, Ohio, and the high at East Dubuque, Ill. Truck tons out of Huntington, Ind., were pegged at the $1,350/st FOB level during the week.
“Product is going to the ground briskly across Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and in areas of Nebraska,” said one contact. “There will likely be a slowdown in some areas over the weekend as much-needed rain is forecast through some of the Cornbelt.”
Western Cornbelt:
Ammonia was reportedly moving in parts of Iowa and Nebraska during the week, with the market remaining at $1,290-$1,320/st FOB for prompt truck tons.
Southern Plains:
Ammonia pricing was quoted at $1,100/st FOB Woodward, Okla., $1,150/st FOB Verdigris, Okla., and $1,175/st FOB Coffeyville, Kan., for the last reported offers.
South Central:
Truck pricing for ammonia out of Gulf Coast terminals slipped to $1,050-$1,080/st FOB, down $20-$30/st from last report. No prices were being offered at El Dorado, Ark., Midway, Tenn., or Cherokee, Ala., sources said.
Northwest Europe:
Ammonia prices remained steady at $1,250/mt CFR, with buyers asking for $1,100/mt CFR and suppliers trying to move the price back to $1,300/mt CFR.
Export numbers from Indonesia showed how European buyers were reaching out to non-traditional suppliers. The Trade Data Monitor figures for January-September showed Indonesia supplied 112,000 mt to European buyers out of 1.45 million total tons exported, compared with no tonnage during the same period in 2021. September shipments included 46,000 mt sent to Europe out of an export total of 115,000 mt.
Indonesia:
January-September 2022 exports of ammonia were reported at 1.45 million mt by Trade Data Monitor, up 4% from the 1.39 million mt exported during the same period in 2021. The largest single buyer was South Korea with 425,000 mt. India purchased 187,000 mt, and Taiwan took 166,000 mt.
As noted earlier, European buyers took 112,000 mt, compared with no shipments during the first three quarters of 2021. The demand from Europe, said sources, is directly related to the high cost of natural gas. Even with higher freight rates, buyers were able to find lower prices from producers that would keep prices from moving past the current $1,250/mt CFR.
Third-quarter 2022 exports were up slightly to 450,000 mt. September 2022 exports were reported at 115,000 mt, up 6% from the 109,000 mt exported during September 2021.The main buyers in September were Turkey and South Korea, each with 23,000 mt for 20% of the exports. Taiwan took 15,000 mt for 13% of the market. Finland was the largest European buyer in September with 14,000 mt, for 12% of the market.
Persero, the holding company for the state-owned urea producers, signed an MOU with Fertiglobe to handle global sales of Indonesia urea. At the same time, Persero opened a trade office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
In a press release, Persero said the representative office and MOU will ease access to raw materials for NPK production as well as secure new global markets for Indonesian product. Industry watchers said the deal could be a boon for Indonesian plans to upgrade its ammonia production and get into the green ammonia market.
Malaysia:
January-September 2022 ammonia exports were reported at 332,000 mt by Trade Data Monitor, down about 14% from the 386,000 mt exported during the same period in 2021. The main buyers were Thailand with 195,000 mt and India with 45,000 mt.
Third-quarter 2022 exports were reported at 113,000 mt, down a touch from the 117,000 mt exported during the same three months in 2021.September 2022 exports were reported at 49,000 mt, down 15% from September 2021 exports of 58,000 mt.
Thailand:
January-September imports of ammonia were reported at 207,000 mt by Trade Data Monitor, down about 12% from the 306,000 mt imported during the same period in 2021. Malaysia was the main source of ammonia at 184,000 mt.
Third-quarter 2022 imports were reported at 11,000 mt, up about 15% from the 96,000 mt received during July-September 2021.September 2022 imports were pegged at 33,000 mt, down slightly from the 36,000 mt received during September 2021. Malaysia dominated the sourcing of the ammonia with 30,000 mt.
The difference between the Malaysia quantity reportedly sent to Thailand and what the Thai government confirmed for the same period is usually a result of when product clears the local customs facilities. This often leads the receiving country to show fewer tons than the sending country for the same period.
Turkey:
January-September 2022 ammonia imports were reported at 515,000 mt by Trade Data Monitor, down about 19% from the 635,000 mt imported during the same period in 2021.
The top supplier for the first nine months remained Russia with 162,000 mt, even though there was no difference between the year-to-date August and September figures. The bulk of the Russian material came earlier in the year before exports from the Black Sea were shut down.
Third-quarter 2022 imports were reported at 80,000 mt, up 22% from the 66,000 mt imported during the same period in 2021. Some leftover tons from Russia were counted in the total imports. However, Saudi Arabia was the top supplier with 39,000 mt.
September 2022 imports showed no Russian product. Imports for the month were reported at 80,000 mt, up 22% from the 66,000 mt imported during September 2021. The top supplier was Qatar with 28,000 mt, representing 35% of total imports. Qatar did not send any ammonia to Turkey in 2021 or 2020. Libya took 21% of the import market, with 17,000 mt.