Sources report that India’s STC has issued awards to 10 companies for a total of 800,000 mt. Four more companies are still in talks with STC for an additional 200,000 mt.
The deals came after STC counter bid the traders at $535-$540/mt CFR based on the port of discharge. The original offers came in at $550-$567/mt CFR. Reportedly, the Arab producers are refusing to budge off their initial offers of $555-556/mt FOB.
Of the companies getting awards, many of them were offering Iranian tons either as the total of their offers or as part of a larger mix.
The purchase of 800,000 mt to 1 million mt is higher than industry sources were saying would be picked up in this round. STC has traditionally been a conservative buyer. The large quantity purchased, however is important. Sources report that India’s reserves of urea are drastically low.
For more details see the May 21 issue of Green Markets.