<article><p class="lead">Japanese trading house Mitsubishi has sold two spot ammonia cargoes this week at $330/t cfr to Taiwan and China respectively. This marks a significant drop from current pricing levels in Asia-Pacific. </p><p>Taiwanese buyer TFC has secured 15,000t from Mitsubishi at $330/t cfr, significantly below the $340-360/t cfr price assessed by Argus last week. Ammonia importer BASF China has also bought 5,000-10,000t from Mitsubishi for delivery to Zhanjiang at $330/t cfr. </p><p>With freight estimated at around $30-40/t from Indonesia to east Asia, the price nets back to around $290-300/t fob Indonesia. Both cargoes will load at PAU in Luwuk Indonesia and will be delivered to Taiwan and China in mid-January. </p><p>The deals signal a notable softening of the Asian markets this week, driven by global oversupply. </p><p>TFC has also finalised its supply contracts for next year, totalling 180,000t. It has agreed to split its requirement between suppliers Saudi Arabia's Sabic and Mitsubishi. A small quantity will be bought on a spot basis during the year. </p><p>BASF China is close to concluding its annual supply contracts. It typically imports 90,000-100,000 t/yr of ammonia into Caojing. The supply contracts for 2019 are in the final stages of being negotiated with multiple parties. </p></article>
