The international ammonia market remains bearish in the West and relatively bullish in the East in a week in which the headline news was the slide in the Tampa contract to $400pt cfr for June loadings. The $50pt drop in the settlement took some players by surprise as the imminent natgas cuts and subsequent plant…
Dutch fertilizer major OCI Global has confirmed the first low-carbon material from its showcase Texas Blue Clean Ammonia project will emerge in early 2025 and that the facility it well-positioned for the arrival of Europe’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Due onstream in the first six months of next year, the Beaumont-based facility is at…
Global urea prices have been moving lower since they peaked in the second half of February. Middle East granular urea spot values were assessed by Profercy around $385pt fob just two months ago. Basis offer levels last week for May shipments, latest values are below $285pt fob. Recent sales tenders in the east include those…
Confusion over the pricing situation East of Suez has been the overwhelming topic of conversation in the merchant ammonia market over the past week, with a series of high-priced sales into China and Taiwan taking many by surprise, as did a discounted deal into India. The three sales by traders into Taiwan and China at…
In stark contrast to Q4 2023, global urea markets have been buoyant over the past month. Key global benchmarks in both the east and west have rallied by more than 20%, matching levels last seen in early-November 2023. A supply squeeze in the east, compounded by early demand in Oceania, as well as a round…
The global merchant ammonia market is longer than it has been for many months and while this week’s sharp fall in the Tampa contract was widely expected, the size of the discount slightly underwhelmed some leading players. Many had expected a three-digit drop from January’s $525pt cfr rather than the $80pt slide to $445pt cfr…
In Europe, the nitrate market feels on the cusp of a wave of demand emerging with the urea markets providing a positive backdrop for the first time since September. Producers and distributors have noted demand surfacing, with product selling at prevailing offer levels. The scale of business thus far has been modest. Still, this is…
The Profercy Nitrogen Index has made its single biggest weekly gain since the first week of September. The start of 2024 appears reminiscent of early 2021 when the year started with a rally ahead of the Spring application period in many western markets. This is in stark contrast to the last two years (2022-2023) when…
After a challenging Q4, Egyptian producers have capitalised on a wave of short covering and demand for shipments to nearby markets. Over 100,000t of granular urea has been placed in 48 hours with prices rallying more than $30pt. At the start of the week, the market was on standby, awaiting news from India regarding the…
National Fertilizers Limited (NFL) closed a tender 4 January for shipments to 29 February. Business elsewhere has largely been on hold ahead of the conclusion of the tender. Indeed, both price levels and the eventual volume booked will shape market discussions around January into February shipments. This comes as peak-season import demand is due to…