Central Florida:
Central Florida phosphate prices were unchanged at $630/st FOB for DAP and $655/st FOB for MAP. North Florida MAP postings continued at the week-ago $650/st FOB level.
US Gulf:
NOLA DAP pricing slid to $570-$582.50/st FOB, off from the week-ago $578-$585/st FOB, with the low end reportedly set on a first-half March trade. Indications for local product continued at $600/st FOB, though no business was reported at that level.
MAP barge trading was reported at $600-$615/st FOB, off $5/st from the top of the prior range, while local product was indicated at $620/st FOB. Citing a belief that phosphates are currently overvalued relative to the price of corn, some sources expect the market to be thinly traded for the remainder of the spring.
US Imports:
July-December DAP imports firmed 99.5% year-over-year, to 713,949 st from 357,920 st. December imports fell sharply, however, to just 770 st from the year-ago 39,301 st, a 98.0% decline. July-December imports from Saudi Arabia were unchanged at 454,703 st, while tons shipping from Jordan continued at 119,543 st. Australia sent 80,372 st.
MAP/Other imports softened 12.8% in December, to 68,369 st from 78,365 st in December 2022. Imports moved up 13.5% in July-December, however, to 521,354 st from the previous year’s 459,475 st. Saudi Arabia sent 143,702 st for the fertilizer year-to-date, while Tunisia fell to second place with 128,632 st. Mexico shipped 116,774 st, ahead of 81,991 st from Australia.
US Exports:
No new DAP or MAP spot export business was reported out of the US Gulf, leaving prices unchanged at $570/mt FOB.
DAP exports softened 46.0% in July-December, to 236,772 st from the year-ago 438,278 st. December cargoes were counted at 31,871 st, a 66.8% decline from the 95,993 st reported one year earlier. US DAP sellers sent 81,605 st to Peru in July-December, ahead of 37,250 st to Canada and 31,964 st to Uruguay. Brazil took 23,477 st.
December exports of MAP/Other were noted at 272,761 st, a 22.4% increase on the year-ago 222,907 st. July-December volumes were up 1.5%, at 1.00 million st compared to 988,684 st one year earlier. Canada received 765,681 st of US MAP in July-December, ahead of 76,770 st to Australia and 35,424 st to Mexico.
Eastern Cornbelt:
DAP was unchanged at $635-$655/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with MAP at $670-$690/st FOB in the region. The lower end of both ranges was reported out of spot Illinois River terminals, with the Cincinnati market quoted at $650-$655/st FOB for DAP and $675-$685/st FOB for MAP.
Pricing in the Great Lakes region included MAP at $720-$730/st FOB Michigan warehouses and DAP at $685/st FOB or DEL.
Western Cornbelt:
DAP was unchanged at $635-$650/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with MAP reported at $660-$690/st FOB in the region. The St. Louis market was steady at $635-$645/st FOB for DAP and $660-$675/st FOB for MAP.
Northern Plains:
DAP and MAP offers at St. Paul, Minn., in mid-February remained at $660/st FOB and $720/st FOB, respectively.
Northeast:
The DAP and MAP markets at East Liverpool were steady at $665/st FOB and $700/st FOB, respectively, with delivered MAP quoted at the $715/st level in Pennsylvania. No current MAP offers were confirmed at Fairless Hills in mid-February.
Eastern Canada:
The latest MAP offers in Eastern Canada were reported at C$993-$995/mt FOB, up marginally from the previous C$985-$993/mt range. DAP was unchanged at C$935/mt FOB Montreal.
Morocco:
OCP continued to achieve $600-$610/mt FOB on sales into Western Europe, and the Moroccan producer is reportedly well-committed and opting to offer April volume against a reported spot inquiry from Mexico. Moroccan prices showed a wide range, with the low end reflecting netbacks from sales into India and the high end reflecting business into Western Europe.
India:
The imported DAP price remained at $595/mt CFR, through sources said that level will be difficult to maintain. Under India’s current subsidy plan, the breakeven price for imported DAP was noted at $495-$510/mt CFR.
Sources reported major buyers waiting in the wings for China to resume offering DAP on the global market. These buyers appear to be hoping that prices will drop once Chinese phosphate exports restart. However, Chinese producers are already talking about moving the price higher once they are allowed to ship offshore, sources said.
China:
Earlier in the month, traders anticipated an early March announcement that DAP and MAP exports would soon resume. However, sources now expect no such proclamation until mid-March, and that the tons will not be allowed to ship until April. The expectations are similar to those attached to urea exports.
Based on the current domestic market, sources estimated producer export price discussions at $590-$600/mt FOB.
Benelux:
No new sales could be confirmed this week, but indications for both Moroccan and Russian material nominally edged higher as the euro softened against the US dollar.
Moroccan DAP offers were reported at €590/mt FCA, which reflected $635/mt FCA on the low end at the midweek exchange rate. Russian DAP offered at €605/mt FCA, or around $650/mt, was not included in the range as some distributors indicated that €600/mt FCA was still on the table.
Brazil:
Brazil MAP prices were steady at $550-$560/mt CFR. Players reported seller efforts to push the market to $580/mt CFR, partly due to reports that OCP plans to prioritize TSP production over MAP. However, inland deals were reported at a $540/mt CFR-equivalent during the week.
Rondonópolis prices remained stable, with buyers and sellers finding liquidity in the $670-$690/mt FOB ex-warehouse range. Citing indications that supply limitations could press the market higher in the short-term, some companies sought deals at $700-$735/mt FOB, though low commodity prices remain a strong impediment to new negotiations.
Barter ratios in the physical market were noted above 30 bags of soybeans per mt of MAP, over the five-year average of 27 bags per mt.