Toronto — Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund said on Jan. 23 that it has completed its previously-announced acquisition of Parsippany, New Jersey-based General Chemical Holding Co. (GM Dec. 9, 2013, p. 11). The final total cash purchase price is expected to be approximately US$900 million after a working capital adjustment and payment of post-closing taxes. “This is a historic event for Chemtrade. The acquisition of General Chemical adds significant size, scale, and scope to Chemtrade’s existing product and service platform,” said Chemtrade President and CEO Mark Davis. “General Chemical has strong portfolio alignment with our current business, enhancing our existing sulfuric acid geographic footprint and greatly expanding our water treatment business so it now extends across most of North America. The acquisition of General Chemical also moves Chemtrade into new but related product categories and end markets, and positions Chemtrade to capitalize on new growth opportunities.”
Canpotex announced on Jan. 24 that it has reached agreement with Sinochem Fertilizer Macao Commerical Offshore Ltd. (Sinofert) for the supply of 700,000 mt of potash to China during the first half of 2014. Canpotex said the new contract “is priced at current and competitive market levels.”
The report follows a Jan. 20 announcement from Russian potash producer Uralkali that it had reached an agreement for first-half 2014 potash deliveries to China with a buying consortium headed by CNAMPGC, a major Chinese agrochemical corporation, for 700,000 mt at $305/mt. That level reflects a $95/mt drop from the first-half 2013 contract price of $400/mt reached between China and major potash producers in January 2013.
“We are very pleased to sign a supply contract with our long-term Chinese customer, and to continue our history of being a leading supplier to this important market,” said Steven Dechka, Canpotex president and CEO. “We look forward to meeting China’s future growing potash needs in collaboration with our Chinese partner.”
Canpotex is the exclusive offshore marketing company owned by Saskatchewan potash producers Agrium Inc., The Mosaic Co., and Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc.
U.S. Gulf/Tampa: There were no new reports of business in the Tampa market last week, leaving the last done Mosaic’s purchase of one spot cargo at $415/mt CFR, with the bulk of the business for January at the $450/mt CFR level negotiated with Yara earlier.
At press time, there was no word on new Mosaic/Yara business for February, but most sources believe Yara will be under pressure to match or better the $415/mt level.
February NYMEX gas settled Jan. 23 at $4.730/mmBtu, up from Jan. 16’s $4.382/mmBtu. Continued cold weather took the credit for the price increase.
Eastern Cornbelt: Temperatures across the Eastern Cornbelt plunged to subzero lows again last week, and the arctic chill also blanketed much of the Northeast.
Single-digit readings were reported at midweek in northern Illinois, much of Indiana, and central and northern Ohio, with wind chill advisories in effect for a large swath of the region. Wind chills in northern Illinois registered a chilly minus 8 degrees at midweek, but were expected to drop to minus 20-30 degrees in some locations by Jan. 23.
Gusty winds prompted the National Weather Service at midweek to issue a wind chill advisory for the entire state of Indiana, with lows commonly reported at minus 15-20 degrees. Similar wind chill readings were reported in central and northern Ohio, along with 1-2 inches of new snow in northeastern areas of the state. Ohio forecasts called for more frigid weather through the coming weekend.
With little new business to test the market, anhydrous ammonia pricing remained at a nominal $520-$540/st FOB in the region, with the low in Illinois and the upper end in the Indiana market.
Western Cornbelt: Ammonia pricing remained at $480-$520/st FOB regional terminals, with the low reported in Iowa and Nebraska and the upper end in Missouri for spring prepay. Delivered ammonia was pegged in the $490-$500/st range in Missouri for prompt material.
Frigid winter weather once again settled over the Western Cornbelt last week, along with icy winds. “I think the Midwest has had its share of winter this year,” said one Missouri contact.
Temperatures on Jan. 23 dipped to minus 12 degrees in Mason City and minus 5 in Omaha, while wind chills on that date were reported down to minus 24-37 degrees across Iowa and north-central Nebraska.
California: After record-setting drought conditions in December that continued through the first half of January, California Gov. Jerry Brown on Jan. 20 formally declared a drought emergency for the state.
The declaration followed what was the driest year on record for many parts of the state in 2013. The tinder dry conditions, combined with Santa Ana winds and unseasonably hot weather, fanned as many as 150 separate wildfires in the state during the first weeks of 2014. Unfortunately the forecast showed little relief, with the National Weather Service last week talking of more hot, dry weather for the entire southwestern U.S.
Sources said the dry conditions continued to impact fertilizer sales, with growers and dealers delaying purchases due to uncertainties about the upcoming crop year.
The anhydrous ammonia market remained at $630-$635/st DEL in California. Aqua ammonia was steady as well at $172/st FOB in the state.
Pacific Northwest: The anhydrous ammonia market was quoted at $533-$550/st DEL in the Pacific Northwest, down roughly $20-$25/st from last report, with the low for railed tons and the upper end for truck-delivered material.
Drought conditions intensified in the Pacific Northwest in early January. Most of Oregon was experiencing severe drought at mid-month, while nearly all of Washington was in the moderate drought category.
U.S. Gulf: Granular prompt barge prices were on a roller coaster last week, with the actual range for the week spiking, then dipping, and ultimately moving back up again.
Early week trades were put as high as $425/st FOB, if not higher. Prices fell sharply early Tuesday, however, dropping to $380-$385/st FOB before working their way back up on Thursday to $400-$403/st FOB.
Many factors were cited for the volatility, with a main one being the news that Iranian tons might be easier to trade in the world market. Sources also said there was more urea offered in a Sri Lankan tender than expected. Some were also starting to count import vessels coming into the U.S. in January-March, and many felt the market would be well supplied.
Others said it was simple profit taking after a huge run-up in prices that had puzzled many from the get-go. Some noted as well that heady demand from Texas and the Southern Plains was simply not matched by upriver buyers. There were lower-priced Chinese tons on the market as well.
Rumors that CF was having production problems at Donaldsonville also got some play in market chatter, with some pumping up the significance and others downplaying it. CF said it does not comment on plant outages.
Prills continued to strengthen, with the latest business called $390/st FOB. The Lifeco plant in Libya, which had been in startup mode, was back down again last week.
Eastern Cornbelt: Granular urea pricing was reported firmly at the $450/st FOB level in the Eastern Cornbelt, up another $10-$30/st from the previous week, depending on location.
The $450/st FOB level was also reported last week FOB Baltimore, Md., and Savannah, Ga.
Western Cornbelt: Sources continued to report firming prices for urea and phosphates in the Western Cornbelt, along with a limited amount of new buying activity at the retail and wholesale level. “Some are finally pulling the trigger since spring is closer,” said one source.
The granular urea market was reported at $430-$450/st FOB in the region last week, up another $10-$20/st from the previous week, with most sources calling the market firm at the upper end of that range.
California: Sources reported rapidly firming urea and phosphate markets in California. “Changes are in the wind,” said one contact at midweek, “and there could be more changes as the week progresses.”
That was particularly true of urea. Sources said the Stockton market had firmed from $430/st FOB the previous week to $445-$465/st FOB early last week, reflecting a $65/st increase from late December pricing levels. By Jan. 23, the Stockton market had reportedly firmed again, moving to the $470-$480/st FOB range from some suppliers.
Pacific Northwest: The granular urea market was quoted at $480-$490/st FOB Rivergate, Ore., up a full $90/st from late December pricing levels.
Delivered urea was also up dramatically in the Pacific Northwest, with sources quoting the market in a broad range at $475-$510/st DEL in the region, depending on location.
Western Canada: The granular urea market was quoted at $590-$615/mt DEL in Western Canada, up some $70-$90/mt from late December pricing levels.
Indonesia: Pusri concluded its auction without selling everything it offered.
Dreymoor picked up one cargo at $413.50/mt FOB under the action agreement. Another cargo was sold under separate negotiations to Graceland for late February shipment at $415/mt FOB. Sources speculate the cargoes are heading for Australia.
The prices reflect a growing confidence in the market. Some are saying, however, that this confidence will last only a few more weeks unless more buyers step in.
U.S. Gulf: UAN barges continued to move up last week, with most calling the market $280-$295/st ($8.75-$9.22/unit) FOB.
Price ideas were also moving up on the East Coast, with sources now quoting that market at $310-$320/mt CFR.
Eastern Cornbelt: UAN pricing was working its way up in the Eastern Cornbelt. Sources quoted the low of the UAN-28 market at $287/st ($10.25/unit) FOB Cincinnati, Ohio, for prompt tons, while Illinois sources pegged the UAN-32 market in the $325-$333/st ($10.16-$10.41/unit) FOB range for spring prepay.
On the East Coast, the UAN-32 market FOB Baltimore and Savannah was pegged at the $310/st ($9.69/unit) level last week.
Western Cornbelt: UAN-32 was quoted in the $315-$330/st ($9.84-$10.31/unit) FOB range in the Western Cornbelt, up just slightly from last report, with the low reported in southern Missouri. Iowa sources continued to quote spring prepay tons in the $325-$330/st ($10.16-$10.31/unit) FOB range last week.
California: UAN-32 pricing in California was moving up as terminal markets changed to reflect higher replacement costs. Sources quoted the market at $315-$325/st ($9.84-$10.16/unit) FOB, up roughly $13-$15/st from last report, with the low end FOB Stockton. The upper end of the regional range was pegged at $345/st ($10.78/unit) FOB in desert locations of the state.
Pacific Northwest: UAN-32 pricing was up significantly in the Pacific Northwest. Sources quoted the low end of the regional range last week at $355/st ($11.09/unit) DEL, up $40/st from December, and new producer postings were even higher.
Effective Jan. 22, Agrium’s UAN-32 postings firmed to $360/st ($11.25/unit) rail-DEL in Washington, northern Idaho, and Oregon excluding Malheur County; $365/st ($11.41/unit) rail-DEL and $370/st ($11.56/unit) truck-DEL in southern Idaho and Oregon’s Malheur County; and $365/st ($11.41/unit) rail-DEL and $380/st ($11.88/unit) truck-DEL in the Klamath Basin sales area. Agrium’s postings in Montana moved on that date to $370/st ($11.56/unit) DEL for UAN-32 and $325/st ($11.61/unit) DEL for UAN-28.
Western Canada: UAN-28 pricing was moving up in Western Canada. Sources reported dealer pricing at $385-$406/mt ($13.75-$14.50/unit) DEL in the region, up approximately $50/mt from last report, with the low reported in Manitoba and the upper end in Alberta.
U.S. Gulf: While the last done business continued to be called $300/st FOB, sources say $320-$330/st FOB is being quoted for the next round of business.
Western Cornbelt: Ammonium nitrate was inching up in the Western Cornbelt. Iowa sources quoted the dealer market at the $360/st FOB level last week, up $10/st from last report.
California: No market was reported for ammonium nitrate in California.
AN-20 was unchanged at $300/st DEL and $290-$295/st FOB in the state.
CAN-17 pricing in California was quoted at $305-$328/st FOB last week.
Pacific Northwest: No market was reported for ammonium nitrate in the Pacific Northwest.
Effective Jan. 22, Agrium’s AN-20 postings moved to $240/st rail-DEL and $250/st truck-DEL from Kennewick, Wash., to points in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and northeastern Nevada.
CAN-17 remained at a nominal $338/st FOB in the region.
Eastern Cornbelt: Granular ammonium sulfate remained at $270-$280/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt. Jan. 24 postings from Honeywell included $270/st FOB Illinois terminals at Mapleton, Danville, and Granite City, with mid-grade posted at $250/st FOB Danville and Byron, Ill.
Western Cornbelt: Sources pegged the granular ammonium sulfate market at $270-$275/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt. Honeywell’s postings moved on Jan. 24 to $270/st FOB Omaha and Dubuque, Iowa.
The ammonium thiosulfate market remained at $310-$335/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the low reported in southern Missouri. One Iowa contact pegged the common dealer market at the $325/st FOB mark last week.
California: Ammonium sulfate pricing in California was down from last report. Sources quoted the market at $245-$285/st FOB in the state, with the low in Lathrop and the upper end FOB El Centro.
Ammonium thiosulfate remained at $300/st FOB Stockton.
Pacific Northwest: Agrium’s Jan. 13 granular ammonium sulfate postings in the Pacific Northwest included $260/st FOB warehouses in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Nevada, and $265/st DEL in those states plus Montana and Wyoming.
IRM’s postings for Tranzform and WesternPremium ammonium sulfate remained at $245/st FOB and $255/st DEL in Oregon, Washington, Montana, and Idaho, with WesternStandard referenced at $198/st FOB and $208/st DEL in those locations.
Ammonium thiosulfate pricing was unchanged at $310-$330/st FOB in the Pacific Northwest, depending on location and supplier.
Western Canada: Granular ammonium sulfate continued to be reported at the $385/mt DEL level in Western Canada, though dealer reference prices had reportedly firmed some $50/mt from last report, to $430-$435/mt DEL in the region.
Central Florida: Phosphate movement remained light to nonexistent in Central Florida last week. Rumors persisted that producers were out of stock and orders were declining through March, although the claim was denied by one major producer. With corn and produce planting due to commence in Florida sometime in February or March, business was expected to pick up soon.
Persistent dry patches in the Northeast were aided by precipitation in recent weeks, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, and the region was drought-free as of Thursday for the first time in weeks. Dry conditions continued in the Southeast, however, with drought conditions in the Carolinas and south-central Florida largely unchanged from the previous reporting period.
No phosphate sales were in found in Central Florida last week, though the DAP price range rose slightly to $400-$415/st FOB based on Mosaic’s posted price of $415/st FOB. The previous price range was $400-$410/st FOB.
Central Florida MAP continued to command a $20/st FOB premium over DAP.
U.S. Gulf: DAP trading on the river cooled last week after a meteoric rise in the previous reporting period. Many sources reported a phosphate hangover of sorts. Trading slowed considerably, and dealers dug in to wait for end-users to recover from sticker shock.
Terminal sales were sluggish, with reports of some sales occurring at levels below current replacement costs.
News of easing sanctions in Iran further deflated the phosphate market as downward price corrections for urea depressed interest, one source said.
Prompt trading was muted, though trades with a February delivery date were reported in a range of $435-$445/st FOB.
Rock removal continued to delay traffic on the upper Mississippi River last week. The work was expected to continue as long as levels at Cape Girardeau, Mo., remained below the 10-foot mark. Major delays were also reported between St. Louis and the Illinois River due to ice.
The 4 p.m. snapshot of the futures market on Jan. 23 saw corn prices mixed, while soybean and wheat prices were down. Although corn stocks were high following the large 2013 harvest, increased demand was reported from livestock and ethanol producers.
Corn for March 2014 was $4.29/bushel, up from $4.28/bushel the previous week, while the May 2014 corn price fell slightly to $4.3525/bushel from the previous week’s $4.355/bushel. Trading of December 2014 corn contracts checked in at $4.4925/bushel, down from the previous week’s $4.5225/bushel.
The March 2014 soybean price was $12.77/bushel, falling considerably from $13.15/bushel a week earlier. Soybeans for May 2014 were put at $12.625/bushel, also down from the previous week’s $12.9625/bushel, while soybeans for November 2014 were posted at $11.0875/bushel, lower than the $11.2225/bushel a week earlier.
Wheat for March 2014 was put at $5.70/bushel, down from the previous week’s $5.7275/bushel. Wheat for May 2014 was also down at $5.7625/bushel, compared with the prior week’s $5.7975/bushel.
Though the NOLA DAP barge market cooled to a near standstill last week, the price range rose to $435-$445/st FOB based on limited transactions, up from the previous range of $385-$442/st FOB. MAP barges were reported at a $15-20/st FOB premium to DAP, although no new sales were found.
Eastern Cornbelt: DAP in the Eastern Cornbelt had reportedly firmed to $475-$480/st FOB, up some $20-$30/st from last report, with the low reported out of the Cincinnati market for immediate shipment. MAP was trading at a $15-$20/st premium to DAP, depending on location and supplier.
10-34-0 pricing was steady at $445-$455/st FOB in the region.
Western Cornbelt: DAP pricing had reportedly moved to a firm $470-$480/st FOB regional warehouses
U.S. Gulf: Potash barge prices continued to slip last week, with new spot trades reported as low as $300/st FOB, making a range of $300-$310/st FOB. While some argued that barges may have found a floor, others said a floor was nowhere in sight, as plenty of product is available and buyers, sensing a weak market, are in no mood to pay higher prices.
Eastern Cornbelt: Potash remained at a flat $350-$357/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the upper end for white granular tons.
Western Cornbelt: Sources quoted the regional potash market at $345-$357/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the low reported on a spot basis in the Iowa market. The upper end of the regional range was reported for white granular and soluble potash.
California: Potash pricing in California was down from last report. Sources quoted the market at $474-$480/st FOB in the state, roughly $20/st below last report, while delivered potash had fallen by a similar amount, to $475-$485/st in the state, depending on location.
The sulfate of potash (SOP) market continued to be quoted at $660-$670/st FOB in California. Crystalline potassium nitrate remained at $950/st FOB for bulk and $1,020/st FOB for bags.
Pacific Northwest: Potash pricing continued to fall in the Pacific Northwest, with minimal movement reported. Sources quoted the market as low as $430-$435/st DEL into Washington and Oregon, while pricing FOB Utah mines was reported in the $375-$385/st range. At the upper end of the regional range, sources tagged the potash market at $435-$445/st FOB or DEL last week.
K-Mag was reported at $451-$471/st FOB in the Pacific Northwest, down $10/st from last report.
Western Canada: The potash market FOB Saskatchewan mines to customers in Western Canada was reported at $349/mt FOB, down significantly from pricing levels reported last fall. Warehouse potash prices in the region were down as well, with sources quoting a range of $360-$380/mt FOB, depending on location.
China: Uralkali announced on Jan. 20 that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Uralkali Trading, has reached an agreement for first-half 2014 potash deliveries to China with a buying consortium headed by CNAMPGC, one of the major Chinese agrochemical corporations. The contract is for 700,000 mt at $305/mt, and the contract period runs through June 30, 2014.
That level reflects a $95/mt drop from the first-half 2013 contract price of $400/mt reached between China and major potash producers in January 2013 (GM Jan. 7, Jan. 21, 2013).
“The contracts between Uralkali and the Chinese companies clearly testify to growing demand and the beginning of market recovery,” said Oleg Petrov, Uralkali director for sales and marketing. “The terms of the agreement with our Chinese partners are mutually beneficial and serve the interests of our consumers, agricultural producers of the PRC.”
There was no word at press time from other major potash vendors, including Canpotex, but they traditionally match the price achieved by the first seller.
Belarus: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko told local media last week that the country lost some $1.5-$1.7 billion due to the potash conflict it had with Uralkali.
Disclaimer of Warranty
All information has been obtained by Green Markets from sources believed to be reliable. However, because of the possibility of human or mechanical error by our sources, Green Markets or others, Green Markets does not guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, or completeness of any information and is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information.
