Central Florida: DAP trucks out of Central Florida continued to fetch $430/st FOB. MAP was listed at $450/st FOB.
U.S. Gulf: Sales of domestic phosphate lagged last week as the market braced for the arrival of a Chinese DAP vessel.
Sources described the material as a mix of DAP and MAP totaling just over 31,000 mt. The vessel was originally destined for discharge in Paranagua, Brazil, an observer said, but was diverted to NOLA.
Transactions of imported material were described in a range of $426-$430/st FOB, considerably below domestic prices quoted in the $432-$435/st FOB range. MAP from the vessel was called as low as $427/st FOB, while U.S.-produced product generally fell in the $437-$445/st FOB range.
While the quality of Chinese-produced phosphate has greatly improved in recent years, some in the market professed wariness at purchasing the material sight unseen. The producer believed responsible for the material, Guizhou KaiLin Group Co., generally manufactures a quality product, one trader said, but conditions present at the time of the vessel’s loading gave some potential buyers pause.
“It was raining during loading,” the trader said of the product. “I won’t touch it until I hear what it looks like from others.”
Industry players described a spike in dry freight rates on the river last week. Shipping from NOLA to St. Louis, Mo., had increased from $10/st to $16/st, while barges headed to Cincinnati, Ohio, were up by as much as $12/st, to $27/st. Freight to Catoosa, Okla., and St. Paul, Minn., were higher by $13/st and $14/st, respectively, to $32/st for Catoosa and $33/st to St. Paul.
September TSP offers were called $377/st FOB, though last-done prompt transactions were believed to remain $380/st FOB.
Sources quoted the NOLA DAP market at $432-$435/st FOB for the week, a decline from $432-$440/st FOB at last check. MAP was called $437-$445/st FOB, down from the previous week’s $440-$445/st FOB.
Eastern Cornbelt: DAP pricing covered a broad range, from a low of $465/st FOB Cincinnati to a high of $485/st FOB Burns Harbor, Ind. MAP was $5-$10/st higher than DAP, depending on location.
10-34-0 was quoted at $520-$525/st FOB for available tons in the region.
Western Cornbelt: DAP pricing had reportedly firmed to $470-$475/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, up $5-$10/st from last report, with MAP quoted at $480-$485/st FOB.
10-34-0 was $525-$545/st FOB in the region, but many locations remained out of product.
Northern Plains: DAP pricing was quoted at $465-$470/st FOB the Twin Cities, with MAP at the $470-$475/st FOB level at that location. North Dakota sources quoted rail-delivered MAP in the $515-$520/st range. “MAP is available, but they say the price will get stronger as we move into fall,” said one Dakota contact.
The 10-34-0 market was quoted at $450/st FOB Grand Forks, N.D., and $477/st DEL in North Dakota. Effective Aug. 1, Agrium’s phosphoric acid postings for rail-DEL SPA and MGA firmed to $1,020/ton of P2O5 in Minnesota and $1,035/ton in the Dakotas.
Northeast: MAP had inched up to $480-$485/st FOB in the Northeast, with the low reported at Fairless. DAP was roughly $10/st less than MAP.
10-34-0 was unchanged at $560/st FOB terminals in upstate New York.
Eastern Canada: MAP was quoted at $745-$755/mt FOB in Eastern Canada, up $35/mt from last report.
U.S. Export: Mosaic announced a sale out of Tampa last week totaling 10,000 mt of DAP and MAP. The Latin America-bound cargo was due for August shipping and carried a price of $465/mt FOB.
The Gulf export market was ca