All posts by mickeybarb@charter.net

Phosphoric Acid

Eastern Cornbelt, Great Lakes, India, Market Watch, Northern Plains, Phosphoric Acid, U.S. Exports, Western Cornbelt

U.S. Exports:

July wet-process phosphoric acid exports were up 402.7 percent, to 38,589 st from 7,676 st in July 2020.

Eastern Cornbelt:

Phos acid prices for September shipment were quoted at $13.35/unit rail-DEL in Illinois and $13.50/unit rail-DEL in Ohio, up $0.20/unit from August.

Western Cornbelt:

Phos acid pricing remained at $13.25/unit rail-DEL in Nebraska, Missouri, and Iowa for September tons, up $0.20/unit from August.

Northern Plains:

Phos acid pricing for September was up $0.20/unit from August, to $13.35/unit rail-DEL in Minnesota and $13.50/unit rail-DEL in the Dakotas.

Great Lakes:

The phos acid market was pegged at $13.35-$13.50/unit rail-DEL in the Great Lakes region for September tons, up $0.20/unit from August, with the low end of the range confirmed in Wisconsin.

India:

India phosphoric acid contracts were reported at $1,160/mt P2O5 CFR for the current quarter. Contracts for the prior quarter stood at $998/mt P2O5 CFR, a $162/mt difference.

Ammonium Polyphosphate

Ammonium Polyphosphate, Eastern Cornbelt, Great Lakes, Market Watch, Northeast, Northern Plains, Western Cornbelt

Eastern Cornbelt:

10-34-0 pricing was quoted at $590-$605/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt for the last offers, up $5-$10/st from last report.

Western Cornbelt:

The 10-34-0 market was quoted at $590-$600/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, up $5-$15/st from last report.

Northern Plains:

10-34-0 pricing was pegged at $600-$605/st FOB for the last reported offers in the Northern Plains, reflecting a $5-$10/st increase.

Great Lakes:

The 10-34-0 market was quoted at $600-$610/st FOB in the Great Lakes region for new offers, up $10-$15/st from last report.

Northeast:

The 10-34-0 market in upstate New York was reported at $625/st FOB, up $25/st from August pricing levels.

Muriate of Potash

Brazil, China, Eastern Cornbelt, Great Lakes, India, Market Watch, Northeast, Northern Plains, Potash Muriate, U.S. Gulf, U.S. Imports, Western Cornbelt

U.S. Gulf:

The most recent NOLA potash barge trades were reported in the $570-$600/st FOB range.

U.S. Imports:

MOP imports were up 13.5 percent in July, to 1.17 million st from the prior year’s 1.03 million st. Canada dominated the import landscape at 998,312 st, followed by Russia at 80,469 st and Belarus at 73,343 st. Tons originating from Israel totaled 28,968 st for the period.

Eastern Cornbelt:

The potash market was pegged at $605-$625/st FOB for prompt tons in the Eastern Cornbelt, up $5-$15/st from last report.

Western Cornbelt:

Potash prices ranged broadly at $575-$615/st FOB in the region, depending on location and time of shipment, with the St. Louis market pegged at the $585-$605/st FOB level for prompt tons.

Northern Plains:

Potash prices ranged broadly in the Northern Plains, depending on supplier and time of shipment, with sources reporting limited 4Q offers for as low as $590/st FOB and prompt tons up to $640/st FOB St. Paul.

Delivered prompt potash was reported at the $660/st level in the region, with the last prices FOB Saskatchewan mines remaining at $545-$555/st FOB for 4Q tons, depending on grade.

Great Lakes:

The potash market was pegged at $615-$625/st FOB for red and up to $630/st FOB for white tons in the Great Lakes region, depending on location.

Northeast:

Potash pricing had reportedly strengthened to $620-$625/st FOB Fairless Hills, with the low for September tons and the high for Q4 shipments.

India:

No news was reported on RCF’s tender for 105,000 mt of white/pink standard potash, which closed on Aug. 27.

The tons were for delivery to Hay Bunder in three lots of 35,000 mt, with the first shipment to arrive on or before Oct. 15, the second on or before Nov. 15, and the third by Dec. 21. Offers were required to remain valid for 30 days from the tender closing.

China:

China’s plan to wait for potash prices to drop before signing a supply contract will not be a successful strategy this year due to the strong global market, Nutrien Ltd. CFO Pedro Farah said at the RBC Capital Markets Global Industrials Virtual Conference on Sept. 9.

“We think at some point and time there is enough pressure there that they will have to come to the table,” he said, citing decreasing inventories in the country. Through Canpotex “we basically have had no sales to China right now,” he said. “I don’t think we’re feeling pressured to sell anything.”

Farah said Nutrien is not interested in selling below the market price and expects all parties will come to the table to sign a potash supply contract at “very rational prices.”

Brazil:

The upper end of the range for MOP at Paranagua moved up $20/mt, widening the price range to $700-$770/mt CFR. Sources said the price shift is the result of limited MOP availability at the ports. Reportedly, a number of MOP vessels are still waiting for permission to dock and unload.

Once the ships berth, getting the fertilizer to the inland buyers will be difficult. For weeks there has been a shortage of trucks to move fertilizers from the ports to regional distributors. Sources said a politically motivated strike by truckers is now cutting further into the ability to transport fertilizer away from the ports.

The range in Rondonopolis has tightened to $830-$884/mt FOB ex-warehouse, the result of steady demand running into limited supplies. The barter rate for 1 mt of MOP at Sorriso is pegged at 42 bags of soy or 100 bags of corn.

MOP imports for January-August were up 8.8 percent, according to Trade Data Monitor, to 7.8 million mt from 7.2 million mt during the same period last year. Canada at 2.45 million mt, Russia at 2.3 million mt, and Belarus at 1.6 million mt dominated supplies to Brazil so far this year.

August imports were also up this year, to 1.5 million mt from 1.25 million mt in August 2020.

Sulfur

ADNOC - Abu Dhabi, Alberta, Brazil, China, Market Watch, Qatar, Sulfur, Tampa, U.S. Exports, U.S. Gulf, U.S. Imports, Vancouver, West Coast

Tampa:

Tampa molten contracts for the third quarter were valued at $195/lt CFR, up $3/lt from $192/lt CR in the prior quarter.

Refining capacity tumbled during the week, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), a reflection of refinery outages resulting from Hurricane Ida’s Aug. 29 landfall near New Orleans.

Refiners operated at 81.9 percent of capacity for the week ending Sept. 3, a 9.4 point drop from 91.3 percent posted one week earlier. The current rate topped the year-ago 71.8 percent, while trailing the industry’s 84.8 percent five-year average.

Crude inputs softened for the period, falling to an average 14.302 million barrels/d, a 1.636 million barrel/d decrease from 15.938 million barrels/d reported one week earlier.

U.S. Imports:

Sulfur imports softened 24.1 percent in July, to 349,196 st from the year-ago 460,098 st.

U.S. Exports:

Sulfur export totals for July were down 51 percent, to 52,713 st from 107,686 st in July 2020.

U.S. Gulf:

Refineries in the U.S. Gulf were engaged in recovery efforts following Hurricane Ida’s catastrophic Aug. 29 landfall south of New Orleans.

Five out of nine refineries that shut down due to Ida remained offline on Sept. 5, Reuters reported, while restart protocols had been initiated at four. Among those attempting to restart were the Placid facility at Port Allen, the 578,000 barrel/d refinery at Garyville, and ExxonMobil Corp.’s 520,000 barrel/d Baton Rouge facility.

PBF Energy was expected to begin restarting its Chalmette facility after power was restored to the 190,000 barrel/d plant. Reuters reported that power had been restored to seven of the nine offline refineries as of Sept. 7.

Citgo was forced to shut the Sulfur Recovery Unit B-Train at the company’s Corpus Christi, Texas, plant in early September due to a shortage of oxygen supplied from a third-party vendor, Bloomberg reported. Increased oxygen demand from the medical industry was identified as the culprit.

Reduced sulfur demand stemming from phosphate production slowdowns at Mosaic’s Faustina and Uncle Sam facilities in Louisiana remained temporarily balanced by the Gulf’s numerous refinery outages, sources said, although opinions varied regarding the potential market implications going forward.

Some argued that extended delays in restarting some refineries would continue throughout much of the phosphate plants’ expected 8-9 week repair timelines. Others said a quicker restart of Gulf sulfur production could lead to quickly swelling inventories, forcing sellers to shift tonnage offshore. “The bottom is about to fall out of the Gulf,” one source argued.

Sources described limited logistics capacity as one potential wrinkle in the market. “Overall, (supply and demand) are likely close to balanced. However, there is little ability to move the product to the markets in which it could go,” said another source. “It is about to get wonky in the Gulf.”

With no new business reported for the week, Gulf sulfur pricing continued in the $173-$181/mt FOB range, steady from the prior report. A cargo loading from the Gulf was heard trading in the $180s/mt FOB during the week.

Brazil:

Last-confirmed Brazil business remained at $210-$216/mt CFR for the week. Vessel sales rumored in the $240s/mt CFR went unconfirmed on Sept. 9. Players put third-quarter contracts at $221-$223/mt CFR, rising $8-$9/mt from $213-$214/mt CFR in Q2.

Vancouver:

Firmer values at China were described lifting Vancouver higher. Sources noted last-done spot in the $180-$192/mt FOB range, firming slightly from the $180-$190/mt FOB range reported previously.

Alberta:

Alberta sulfur netbacks were noted moving to $68-$122/mt FOB, up from $68-$120/mt FOB at last report.

West Coast:

West Coast price ideas stepped up to $180-$192/mt FOB for the period, sources indicated, compared with $180-$190/mt FOB reported previously. Third-quarter molten contracts were reported at $150-$155/lt FOB, lifting from $140-$155/lt FOB in the second quarter.

China:

With port inventories at China reportedly near the 1.6 million mt mark, demand was noted on an upward swing. Sources called recent import pricing in the $230-$240/mt CFR range, up from $230-$233/mt CFR reported previously.

ADNOC:

Sources noted Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC) solid sulfur offers firming to $180/mt FOB Ruwais for tons loading in September. The market was reported at $175/mt FOB for the prior month, a $5/mt difference.

Qatar:

Muntajat sulfur offers were heard at $178/mt FOB Ras Laffan for September, a $14/mt increase from $164/mt in the prior month.

Sulfuric Acid

Brazil, Gulf Coast, Market Watch, Midwest, Sulfuric Acid, U.S. Exports, U.S. Gulf, U.S. Imports, West Coast

U.S. Gulf:

Market watchers continued to describe prices for sulfuric acid vessels delivered to the Gulf in the $220-$225/mt CFR range, unmoved from one week earlier.

U.S. Imports:

July sulfuric acid imports slipped 7.7 percent, to 329,988 st from the year-ago 357,475 st.

U.S. Exports:

July sulfuric acid exports were noted at 29,262 st, up 19.6 percent from the year-ago 24,465 st.

Gulf Coast:

Domestic Gulf Coast contracts for 2021 were quoted at $85-$110/mt DEL.

Midwest:

Tonnage delivered to the Midwest was reported in the $85-$110/st DEL range for 2021.

West Coast:

West Coast volumes were contracted at $100-$130/mt DEL for annual agreements.

Brazil:

The recent Brazil market continued to be heard at $245-$250/mt CFR, unchanged from the prior report.

Ammonium Thiosulfate

Amthio, Eastern Cornbelt, Great Lakes, Market Watch, Northern Plains, Specialty, Western Cornbelt

Eastern Cornbelt:

Ammonium thiosulfate pricing reportedly dropped to $330-$375/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the low confirmed in Ohio and the high in Indiana.

Western Cornbelt:

The ammonium thiosulfate market was pegged at $350-$375/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt.

Northern Plains:

The last ammonium thiosulfate offers were reported in a broad range at $325-$375/st FOB in the Northern Plains, down significantly from last report.

Great Lakes:

The most recent ammonium thiosulfate business was pegged in the $335-$375/st FOB range for limited offers in the Great Lakes, down considerably from spring business.