Phosphates
Overview
The global phosphates market has witnessed increasing volatility, in response to military conflicts, political tensions and changing market dynamics. Price fluctuations have continued to buffet the market, with increasing demand from south and Southeast Asia the main regions driving consumption growth. Rising raw material prices and improved affordability have lifted prices once again.
Phosphates' usage is also not solely limited to fertilizers. Battery-material suppliers are increasingly seeking to source phosphate rock and specialty phosphates-based products to meet the rapidly rising demand for lithium-iron-phosphate batteries for electric vehicle production.
Our extensive phosphates coverage includes DAP, MAP, TSP and SSP, as well as raw materials phosphate rock and phosphoric acid, with assessments also spanning feed products MCP and DCP. Argus has many decades of experience covering the phosphates market and incorporate our multi-commodity market expertise in key areas including sulphur and ammonia to provide the full market narrative.
Argus support market participants with:
- Daily and weekly phosphates price assessments, proprietary data and market commentary
- Short and medium to long-term forecasting, modelling and analysis of processed phosphate and phosphate rock prices, supply, demand, trade and projects
- Bespoke consulting project support
Latest phosphate news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global phosphate industry.
CSX forecasts softer 4Q rail demand
CSX forecasts softer 4Q rail demand
Washington, 17 October (Argus) — Eastern US railroad said it expects that fourth quarter commodity market conditions will be mixed, limiting some freight demand. "Going into the fourth quarter, near-term conditions look modestly more challenging," chief executive Joe Hinrichs said on Wednesday. But the railroad expects "modest volume growth", supported by a few segments including chemicals and agriculture. But lower locomotive fuel prices and the impact of international coking coal prices, which are linked to export rail contracts, could drive a decrease in total revenue during the fourth quarter. He estimated that impact at roughly $200mn compared with last year's fourth quarter revenue of $3.68bn. CSX expects to see a carryover of year-over-year momentum in chemicals, agriculture and food, forest products and minerals, while metals and automotive will continue to be challenged. Demand for metals shipments is predicted to soften through the end of the year. Interest in shipments, particularly steel, is soft because of "sluggish demand, ample supply and low commodity prices", chief commercial officer Kevin Boone said. A weaker-than-anticipated automotive market contributed to the drop in metals demand. Consumer demand for automotive products has been reduced by high retail prices and interest rates, which has led to increased dealer inventories and slower production, Boone said. But CSX expects that an "interest rate easing cycle will help these markets normalize," Boone said. Metals and equipment volume fell in the second quarter, primarily because of lower steel and scrap shipments. Shipments of metals and equipment fell by 9pc to about 64,000 carloads compared with the same three months in 2023. Revenue dropped to $208mn, down by 8pc from a year earlier. Automotive volume dropped in the second quarter because of lower North American vehicle production, CSX said. Automotive traffic fell to 301,000 railcars loaded, down by 2pc from the third quarter 2023. Automotive revenue dropped to $98mn, down by 3pc compared with a year earlier. The outlook for fertilizer shipments is mixed following the third quarter as a decline in long-haul phosphates shipments persisted. Volume was negative, but the railroad was able to haul some profitable spot shipments. Shipments of fertilizer fell to 45,000 carloads in the third quarter, down by 4pc from a year earlier. Fertilizer revenue dropped to $118mn, down by 5pc from a year earlier. CSX expects growth in some market segments. Chemicals freight demand is expected to continue growing following "consistent, broad strength across plastics, industrial chemicals, LPGs, and waste. That demand helped boost chemicals volume by 9pc compared with a year earlier. Chemicals revenue rose to $727mn in the second quarter, up by 13pc compared with a year earlier. Agricultural and food products shipping demand is expected to continue growing, led by demand for grain and feed ingredients from the Midwest for supplies. That follows a third quarter when higher ethanol shipments, as well as increased overall volume helped raise volume by 9pc from the third quarter of 2023. Revenue from shipping agricultural and food products rose to $416mn, up by 11pc from a year earlier. CSX expects intermodal growth to continue with the trucking market falling, which would help drive more container freight to rail. Intermodal shipments are goods shipped in containers and trailers between different modes of transportation. The 1-3 October strike by the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) did impact intermodal traffic, but the railroad was pleased with the "relatively quick short-term solution", Boone said. International intermodal volume during the third quarter rose because of higher east-coast port traffic. Domestic volume was mostly flat. Overall intermodal volume during the quarter increased by 3pc compared with a year earlier. But lower revenue per container helped reduce total intermodal revenue by 2pc to $509mn. CSX does not expect a major shift in coal volume through the end of the year as coal markets seem relatively stable and utility stockpiles are sufficient, Boone said. Rising natural gas prices are also unlikely to stimulate a "near-term step-up in volumes". Export coal demand has been consistent lately, particularly from buyers in Asia. But revenue per railcar for export coal could make a modest single digit drop, as contracts are tied to international coal benchmarks and prices fell earlier this year. Expport coal voume rose to 11.1mn short tons (10.1mn metric tonnes) in the second quarter on higher demand for thermal and coking coal. But domestic coal deliveries fell to 10.2mn st, down by 12pc from a year earlier, on lower deliveries to power plants and lake and river terminals. Rail coal volume fell by 2pc from a year earlier, while revenue dropped by 7pc to 553mn st. Total CSX profits rose to $894mn, up by 8pc compared with third quarter 2023. Revenue increased to $3.6bn, up by 1pc. By Abby Caplan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Mosaic to test phosphate by-product for US roads
Mosaic to test phosphate by-product for US roads
Houston, 14 October (Argus) — Major US fertilizer producer Mosaic will conduct a test project using radioactive fertilizer by-product phosphogypsum (PG) as a base to pave roads on its New Wales facility in Florida. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved of a 3,200ft pilot road project on Mosaic's operational facility outside of Tampa Bay. The EPA included a set of conditions along with its approval, including sampling data, safety instructions and timelines. "The project poses no greater radiological risk than maintaining the phosphogypsum in a stack," the EPA said. Phosphogypsum is the by-product of phosphate production, typically stored in stacks to limit radiation exposure to the public. PG can contain radium and be radioactive, which can cause cancer, according to the EPA. All uses of PG must be approved by the EPA. The project will have four PG mixes with control pieces of road in between each. The PG mix will be 10 inches deep under three inches of asphalt pavement, using a total of 1,190 tons of PG. Water and soil monitoring will be carried out by the Mosaic. Within 90 days of the test phase, Mosaic must submit a final report on the test to the EPA. By Meghan Yoyotte Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Mosaic to resume production after hurricanes
Mosaic to resume production after hurricanes
Houston, 14 October (Argus) — Major phosphate producer Mosaic expects to resume Florida operations soon after sustaining minimal damage from Hurricane Milton. Power has been restored to all Mosaic facilities and all ports have been reopened, Mosaic said today. Limited damage was found at the facilities and storage warehouses. Operations are expected to return to full production capacity in the coming days after a full clean up is finished. Early last week, Mosaic halted all Florida operations before Milton arrived. Mosaic's Riverview facility near Tampa Bay had already stopped production because of flooding from Hurricane Helene, which made landfall on 26 September. The plant was expected to come back online 10 days after Helene, but Milton swept through Florida before that point. The back-to-back storms cause phosphate barge prices at the US Gulf to surge last week. DAP prices at Nola jumped $24/st from the prior week to $565-582.50/st fob, the highest since late March. MAP barge prices rose by $20/t to $625-650/st fob Nola, a two-month high. Riverview has the capacity to produce 1.8mn metric tonnes (t)/yr of phosphate product, while Bartow and New Wales produced a combined 5.6mn t in 2023. By Meghan Yoyotte Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Brazil’s MAP imports down 9pc in September
Brazil’s MAP imports down 9pc in September
Sao Paulo, 9 October (Argus) — Brazilian MAP imports dropped by 9pc in September, as the country is in its lull season. Imports dropped to 433,540 metric tonnes (t) in September, after having seasonally increased every month since May. This represents a 23pc decrease from August. Imports from Russia accounted for 213,308t, or 49pc of all deliveries. This is 2pc above the same month last year. The country was followed by Saudi Arabia with 86,055t, or 20pc of deliveries, and a 50pc increase over the year prior. Morocco deliveries dropped by 50pc on the year, totaling 83,186t, or 19pc of the total. Deliveries from China fell by 47pc to 21,577t in September from a year prior. Receipts totaled around 3.3mn t year-to-date September, down from around 3.8mn t in the same period in 2023. This mainly reflected lower imports earlier this year, when buyers were waiting for more advantageous prices before committing to volumes. Russia, Morocco and Saudi Arabia were the main suppliers to Brazil in the period, accounting for 52pc, 26pc and 16pc, respectively, of Brazil's imports. But their volumes fell by 6pc, 19pc and 20pc year-to-date September from a year prior, respectively. TSP deliveries up Brazil's TSP imports increased by 61pc in September from the year prior, as some delayed volumes continued to arrive in the country. Imports reached 257,570t in the month, up from 159,753t last year. The volume, however, is slightly below August figures of 270,370t. Morocco accounted for 61pc of the volume with 157,912t, followed by China with 42,800t, or 17pc of the total, and Israel with 29,400t, or 11pc. From January-September, deliveries reached 1.3mn t, 23pc above the 1.07mn t from a year earlier. Morocco, China, Israel and Egypt were the main suppliers, accounting for 73pc, 9pc, 8pc and 7pc of total intake, respectively. SSP imports also increase For SSP, imports rose on the year by 23pc to 291,346t in September, as tight availability of MAP led buyers to lower P2O5 content fertilizers, aiming at supplying late-planting soybean areas. This is also above the 285,238t registered in August. Egypt was responsible for 69pc of the deliveries, with 200,307t. Israel accounted for 37,470t, 14pc of the total, almost doubling the volume delivered in the same month in 2023. India accounted for 13pc of the total, from no volume last year. For the nine-month period, imports totaled 2.3mn t, 22pc higher than the same period in 2023. Egypt, Israel and China were the main suppliers, accounting for 63pc, 14pc and 12pc, respectively, of the total. Imports from China more than doubled to 279,318t year-to-date September from a year earlier. Egypt figures represent a 27pc increase over the period from a year earlier, while Israel deliveries dropped by 15pc in the nine-month period from a year earlier. India deliveries reached 143,693t year-to-date September from 32,999t a year earlier. By Gisele Augusto Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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