Tampa: Mosaic was said to be vatting excess sulfur at Galveston. One source said the amount was about 13,000 mt, and that may be an indication of excess supply.
However, another source said he had been unable to locate additional supplies, which were needed for spot sales. In addition, more molten sulfur was going to prill facilities on the Gulf coast, and at least two vessels will be exported in the coming weeks.
On the world market, prices at Dubai were up in March, and prices were higher in China as well. The higher-priced material had not been delivered to end users, however, and it was unclear if that would hold.
Negotiations for new, second-quarter contract prices for molten sulfur delivered to Tampa should begin in about three weeks, and there was no clear pattern as to whether they will rise, fall, or remain the same.
Refinery capacity operating rates were up about 0.3 percent last week, from 83.6 percent to 83.9 percent, according to the U.S. DOE. The increased refinery rate has not transferred into lower gasoline prices at the pump because of exports of refined material.
Vancouver: Spot prices in China were on the increase last week, but a couple of sources said it appeared to be brokers accumulating positions, and the increases had not yet been passed on to end users there.
A vessel from Vancouver departing early this month will fetch about $170/mt FOB, which was unchanged from the previous month.
West Coast: West Coast prices continued to track the Vancouver market.