US Gulf:

NOLA potash barges were down again, with players reporting trades in a tight range at $574-$575/st FOB, down from the week-ago $585-$600/st FOB.

Eastern Cornbelt:

The potash market was quoted at $695-$705/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the low confirmed at Cincinnati.

Western Cornbelt:

Potash pricing in the Western Cornbelt was quoted at $685-$705/st FOB in late September, with the low reported at St. Louis.

California:

Potash pricing in California was pegged at $870-$890/st FOB, depending on grade and location, down $5/st from last report.

Pacific Northwest:

Potash was unchanged at $845-$865/st FOB in the Pacific Northwest, with the low for 60% and the high for 62% MOP. The last reference prices from Intrepid FOB Moab and Wendover, Utah, included $850/st for 60% white standard and $855/st for 60% white granular.

Western Canada:

Sources quoted potash pricing at C$990-$1,005/mt FOB Saskatchewan mines for truck tons, depending on grade and supplier, down from the last reported high of C$1,050/mt FOB.

India:

Canpotex on Sept. 27 reported that it has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with three of its customers in India – Indian Potash Ltd. (IPL), Coromandel International Ltd., and Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd. The MOUs confirm Canpotex’s willingness to supply, and each customer’s willingness to acquire, up to 500,000 mt of potash annually from Jan. 1, 2023, to Dec. 31, 2025.

Canpotex said the potash sales will depend on its reaching agreement on acceptable commercial terms, including price, with each customer, with the timeliness of negotiations also being an important factor.

Annual contract price talks with international suppliers are expected to begin in November, according to the Managing Director of IPL, India’s largest potash importer.But India’s buyers are in no hurry to finalize the price, IPL Managing Director P.S. Gahlaut said in an interview with Bloomberg last week.

India’s potash availability is comfortable, Gahlaut told Bloomberg, but the country is facing demand destruction due to high potash prices and the loss of critical supplies from Belarus and Russia. Farmers have been using less potash on crops such as rice, wheat, and sugar, while import supplies from Russia and Belarus “have come to a standstill” because of payment issues, Gahlaut said.

India negotiated the current contract price of $590/mt CFR with 180 days’ credit back in February, up from $280-$445/mt CFR last year (GM Feb. 18, p. 14).

India’s potash consumption fell by about 50% in the first five months of the Indian fertilizer year to August, compared with the same period last year, according to the IPL.Potash imports in the first seven months of the 2022 calendar year were down 15%, to 1.7 million mt from 2.0 million mt in the same 2021 period, according to Trade Data Monitor.

Gahlaut expects India’s potash demand to stay flat during the winter growing season unless the government increases subsidies for fertilizer companies. An announcement on subsidies for the winter season is expected soon.

Thailand:

Imports of MOP for January-August 2022 were reported at 653,000 mt by Trade Data Monitor, down slightly from the 676,000 mt imported during the same period of 2021. Canadian MOP dominated the imports with 332,000 mt. The next closest suppliers were Belarus with 81,000 mt, and Germany with 65,000 mt.

August 2022 imports were reported at 102,000 mt, up 28% from the 80,000 imported during August 2021. Canadian potash accounted for 88% of the import market, with 90,000 mt.

Brazil:

The MOP price range in Brazil tightened downward to $650-$670/mt CFR. Sources said reports of more MOP in the vessel lineup is increasing interest in lower prices.

The Rondonopolis price range also tightened to $785-$810/mt FOB ex-warehouse, compared to the previous week’s price of $770-$840/mt FOB.