Central Florida:
Sources reported Central Florida DAP truck pricing unchanged at $650/st FOB for the week. Truck-loaded MAP was called even with DAP at $650/st FOB, also unmoved from the prior report.
North Florida MAP trucks were posted at $650/st FOB, steady from one week earlier.
US Gulf:
Players noted softer values on the week’s NOLA barge phosphate markets, with both DAP and MAP prices slipping in the face of lower import and open-origin offers.
Nearby DAP barges offered at $630/st FOB were reportedly met with bids in a $615-$620/st FOB range, although sources were unable to confirm trades at the lower levels. Offers for domestically produced tons were noted at $645/st FOB, below the market’s week-ago $650/st FOB high. Sources reported direct offers as low as $625/st FOB on Feb. 2, hinting at additional decreases in the offing.
MAP barges said to be of Russian origin were reported trading at $585/mt FOB, below the week-ago $595/st FOB floor. Following the trades, public offers moved to a $575-$580/st FOB range, while a trade rumored at $570/st FOB went unconfirmed on Feb. 2. Players continued to reference the top of the weekly range at $615/st FOB, steady from the week-ago. Domestic barges were posted at $620/st FOB, unchanged from the previous week, with no trades reported at that level.
DAP barges softened to a $630-$645/st FOB range based on reported offers, falling from $635-$650/st FOB one week earlier. NOLA MAP barges were called $575-$615/st FOB, down from $595-$615/st FOB in the prior report.
US Exports:
US Gulf exporters reported no new business during the week, leaving pricing at the last-reported $650/mt FOB level. New offers continued to be quoted at $670/mt FOB.
Eastern Cornbelt:
DAP prices fell to $660-$680/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the Cincinnati market reported at $660-$670/st FOB, well below last week’s $690-$700/st FOB range. MAP dropped to $650-$670/st FOB in the region, down from the prior $675-$685/st FOB range, with the Cincinnati market pegged in the $650-$660/st FOB range.
Western Cornbelt:
DAP pricing slipped to $665-$685/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, down $10-$20/st, with the St. Louis market pegged in the $665-$670/st FOB range in early February. MAP dropped to a low of $625-$630/st FOB St. Louis, down sharply from last week’s $665-$675/st FOB. The upper end of the regional MAP market was pegged at the $660/st FOB level in Iowa.
Southern Plains:
DAP was quoted at $690-$700/st FOB Catoosa/Inola, up $15/st from the previous week, with the low end of the regional market reported at the $685/st level FOB Houston. MAP was pegged at $660-$665/st FOB Catoosa/Inola and $680/st FOB Houston.
South Central:
The DAP market in the South Central region was quoted at $695-$700/st FOB, up from $680-$690/st at last report.
Southeast:
MAP pricing from Nutrien was steady at $650/st FOB Aurora, N.C., and White Springs, Fla.
China:
Trading was limited as China returned from its Lunar New Year celebrations. Sources said that producers continued their practice of looking to deal directly with major buyers, such as those in India. Even with state-owned industries helping to take care of the export paperwork, sources said the lead time for orders is still about two months, in order to ensure that product can be exported.
India:
The Indian government released its fiscal-year 2023 budget on Feb. 1. It calls for a 38% drop in subsidies for nutrient-based fertilizers such as DAP, from $8.7 billion to $5.4 billion. The budget is set to reduce support for domestically produced phosphates to $3.1 billion from $5.1 billion. Subsidies for imported phosphate and potash will be reduced to $2.3 billion from $3.5 billion.
Brazil:
The price for MAP remained stable at $655-$660/mt CFR on limited trading. Sources said they expect to see stronger prices on the heels of reports of a tighter phosphate market, especially with increased delays of Chinese product
The Rondonopolis market moved upward, to $800-$825/mt FOB ex-warehouse.
Argentina:
Trade Data Monitor reported 2022 MAP imports at 793,000 mt, 16% down from the year-ago 942,000 mt. Argentina’s primary suppliers were Morocco with 348,000 mt, and the US with 199,000 mt.
December imports were noted at 19,000 mt, off from 28,000 mt in December 2021. While there was scarcely a difference between import totals in the first semesters of 2021 and 2022 – 426,000 mt in 2021 compared to 423,000 mt in first-half 2022 – the years’ second halves were markedly different. July-December 2022 imports were reported at 370,000 mt, down from 516,000 mt in second-half 2021.