U.S. Gulf: Prompt granular barge prices again worked their way up last week, only to peak and fall once again. Sources put early week trades as low as $391-$394/st FOB, and said they moved up to $400/st FOB and then on to $405-$407/st FOB before again beginning to crater.
Some had been hoping for $410/st FOB. By late Thursday, however, many said prices had fallen back to $400/st FOB, with the expectation that the next trades could again be $395/st FOB.
Almost each week it seems that a flush of demand at lower prices soon meets resistance, and if sellers want to make a sale they have to go back to the lower numbers.
No one was predicting much business for the TFI meeting Feb. 5-8, where players expect traditional tire kicking and price chatter. One observer said it may be March 1 before buyers truly feel they have to buy, adding that at that point, they will have to take what is here or what is certainly on the way, as it might be too late to order in a cargo from offshore.
Others, however, predict that a rather large amount of imports will be coming to NOLA in February, which should leave buyers in good stead if they still need to buy March 1. Still other sources predict that rice acreage will be down this year in favor of corn and soybeans, meaning less need for urea during the often discussed “rice season” at the tail end of annual fertilizer movement.
In the meantime, sources say prills continue to garner a premium, with $412/st FOB cited as the last done business. Sellers have reportedly been quoting $415-$420/st FOB for the next round of business.
Eastern Cornbelt: Granular urea pricing in the Eastern Cornbelt region was steady at $445-$450/st FOB in early February.
Western Cornbelt: The granular urea market in the Western Cornbelt was pegged at $435-$445/st FOB, down slightly from the previous week.
Southern Plains: Granular urea pricing was reported at $425-$435/st FOB the Tulsa market to the dealer, indicating a slight drop from last report. Some sources talked of firming prices as the week advanced, however, with some quoting the Enid, Okla., market at the $440/st FOB level on Feb. 2.
South Central: The granular urea market in the South Central region was pegged at $430-$435/st FOB terminals at midweek, but some suppliers said they were planning to move that market up by $5-$10/st in the near term.
Sources reported some movement of urea and ammonium sulfate on winter wheat in the region, as well as phosphate and potash movement on pasture ground. Sources also reported some forestry applications of urea taking place in eastern Texas last week.
Southeast: Granular urea pricing was pegged solidly at the $440/st level FOB port terminals in the Southeast region, with reports of some suppliers referencing the $450/st FOB mark on the upper end.
Indonesia: Pusri scrapped the granular tender that closed Jan. 27 because the bids did not meet the lowest acceptable price. Pusri wanted $420/mt FOB, but the highest bid came in at $405/mt FOB.
A tally of the tender follows.
| Company | US$/mt FOB |
| Samsung | 405.00 |
| Ameropa | 404.75 |
| Dreymoor | 402.50 |
| Toepfer | 401.50 |
| Brio | 399.00 |
| Helm | 398.00 |