U.S. Gulf/Tampa: Yara concluded August business with major customers at the $690/mt DEL mark, which was a rollover of the company’s July business. To date, no other trades have been reported, putting the current range at a flat $690/mt.
May ammonia imports into the U.S. were off 14 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, at 559,170 st from the year-ago 652,381 st. July-May imports are off 8 percent, to 6.5 million st from 7.1 million mt.
Eastern Cornbelt: Anhydrous ammonia remained at $740-$760/st FOB regional terminals, with the common price in Illinois quoted at the $750/st FOB level.
Corn conditions continued to fall due to heat and drought stress. As of July 22, only 7 percent of the corn in Illinois and Indiana was rated as good or excellent, compared with 15 percent in Ohio. Poor or very poor ratings were assigned to 72 percent of Indiana’s corn crop last week, compared with 66 percent in Illinois, and 52 percent in Ohio. Nationally, USDA placed just 26 percent of the corn crop in the good or excellent categories last week, with 45 percent rated as poor or very poor.
Soybeans were also suffering, with good or excellent ratings assigned to just 12-13 percent of the acreage in Indiana and Illinois, and 20 percent in Ohio. Some 49-53 percent of the soybeans in Indiana and Illinois were rated as poor or very poor last week, compared with 44 percent in Ohio. USDA rated 31 percent of the soybeans nationally as good or excellent as of July 22, with 35 percent of the crop called poor or very poor.
Western Cornbelt: The anhydrous ammonia market remained at $720-$750/st FOB regional terminals. Effective July 20, Agrium’s ammonia postings in the Leal/Beulah sales area in North Dakota firmed again, moving to $825/st FOB and $845/st DEL. Those levels were up $45/st from Agrium’s July 13 list prices in that location.
Crop quality continued to deteriorate due to drought. As of July 22, just 5 percent of Missouri’s corn crop was rated as good or excellent, compared with 23 percent in Iowa and 37 percent in Nebraska. Fully 79 percent of Missouri’s corn fell in the poor or very poor categories last week, along with 33-40 percent of the acreage in Nebraska and Iowa.
As for soybeans, just 7 percent of Missouri’s crop was rated as good or excellent last week, with 68 percent in the poor or very poor categories. In Iowa and Nebraska, 28-30 percent of the soybeans were rated as good or excellent as of July 22.
California: Anhydrous ammonia remained at $745/st DEL in California from Calamco, with aqua ammonia referenced at the $200/st FOB mark. Agrium’s truck-delivered anhydrous ammonia postings in California moved on July 1 to $745/st in Central California and $750/st in Northern California.
California sources gave favorable reports for cotton, rice, corn, hay, almond, and fruit and vegetable crops last week. Rain and cooler temperatures settled over much of California at mid-month, but hot, dry weather returned to the central, southern, and desert areas of the state last week.
Pacific Northwest: Effective July 20, Agrium’s anhydrous ammonia postings moved to $860/st rail-DEL in Oregon, Washington, and northern Idaho; $880/st truck-DEL in northern Idaho and Oregon and Washington east of the Cascades; $885/st rail-DEL in southern Idaho and Utah; and $910/st truck-DEL in Montana and northern Wyoming from the company’s plant in Carseland, Alberta. Those reference prices were up $40/st from Agrium’s July 13 ammonia postings at those locations.
Agrium’s aqua ammonia postings in Washington moved on July 20 to $215/st FOB Central Ferry and Kennewick, a $10/st increase from the company’s July 13 aqua postings at those locat