Ammonium sulphate: International market trend of ammonium sulphate in the third week of August 2018
Source: Zhongyu Information Date: 2018-8-17 17:12:03
8.9-8.16 International market dynamics (from foreign sources)
Turkey: Demand has slowed due to the financial crisis in Turkey, but larger buyers are still asking about the price of ammonium sulphate. Toros this week for the 8,000 tons of ammonium sulfate delivered in September, 5,000 tons in October and 4000 tons of ammonium sulfate were tendered. Gemlik is also looking for 15,000 tons of caprolactam-grade ammonium sulphate on the market but has not yet purchased it.
Europe: Rumors about the decline in OCI ammonium sulfate supply continue to spread in Europe, prompting some to question China’s export of particulate ammonium sulfate to Europe. The price of standard ammonium sulfate exported from Europe is 130-135 US dollars / ton FOB, and the price of granular ammonium sulfate is 165-172 US dollars / ton FOB.
Canada: Trammo is said to have sold 1.5-20,000 tons of granular ammonium sulphate to La Co-op Federee for $230/ton cfr and will be loaded in Antwerp to eastern Canada later this month.
China: The price of ammonium sulfate is still strong due to tight supply. The caprolactam grade ammonium sulfate is quoted at a minimum of $117-118/tonne FOB, and the better quality is quoted at $120/tonne FOB or higher. Golden Barley purchased 6,000 tons of caprolactam-grade ammonium sulfate for sale to the Philippines at a price of $117/ton fob. Chinese producers worry that Turkey’s financial turmoil will reduce demand in September, but other markets are responding to rising urea and other nitrogen fertilizer prices.
Philippines: Farmix is looking for 6,000 tons of ammonium sulphate shipped in September. China’s offer is at least $140/ton CFR.
Indonesia: It is reported that Sentana purchased 25,000 tons of ammonium sulfate from China after searching for goods last week.
Sri Lanka: Baur is looking for 5000-6000 tons of ammonium sulphate, which will be shipped in early September.
Brazil: The market is more active for granular ammonium sulphate than for standard ammonium sulphate. European suppliers shipped $200/tonne CFR in August and are currently working to increase the September shipment price to $205/tonne CFR. The price of China extruded granular ammonium sulfate is 190-195 US dollars / ton CFR, depending on the quality. In August, the European standard ammonium sulfate price was 150-153 US dollars / ton CFR, and the supplier’s target price in September was 155 US dollars / ton CFR.
According to SECEX statistics, imports in the first seven months of 2018 decreased by 14.6%, from 1.26 million tons in January-July 2017 to 1.08 million tons this year. Imports in July were 76,000 tons, compared with 131,000 tons in July 2017. The main supply change was a significant increase in volume from China and a significant reduction in volume from the US and Belgium. China’s exports to Brazil rose from 476,000 tons in January-July 2017 to 656,000 tons this year. US exports to Brazil fell to 275,000 tons from 273,000 tons in 2017, while Belgium’s exports fell from 294,000 tons to 206,000 tons.
US: The PCI Nitrogen ammonium sulphate unit in Pasadena, Texas is undergoing an unplanned overhaul and is expected to last for 17 days. Interoceanic Corp (IOC) is responsible for the sale of ammonium sulfate and sulfuric acid produced by PCI. The company said that the maintenance planned for 2019 will be advanced to August. The capacity of PCI in Pasadena is estimated to be about 630,000 tons/year.
