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Latest Market News

France nitrogen demand jumps on subsidy announcement

  • Spanish Market: Fertilizers
  • 10/07/26

Demand for straight nitrogen fertilizers in France, particularly urea and UAN, increased sharply following the government's subsidy announcement on 9 July.

Farmers will receive at least €50/t ($57/t) on purchases of straight nitrogen fertilizers made between 1 June and 30 September, rising to €70/t where fertilizer accounts for more than 10pc of operating costs.

Urea buying accelerated immediately, with prices rising to €495/t fca from around €460/t fca. Interest also strengthened for sulphur-enriched granular urea (40N+14SO3), with business reported at €460/t fca in big bags.

UAN 30 demand also surged, but prices remained initially unchanged at €370/t fca Rouen and with large sales volumes reported. Some offers reached €380/t fca today while several suppliers withdrew offers pending a reassessment of market levels next week.

The impact on AN 33.5 and CAN 27 was less pronounced, but some European producers withdrew offers from the market.

Market participants also expressed concern that the subsidy could further divert demand away from NPK fertilizers and ammonium sulphate, which are not covered by the support scheme.

By Dana Hjeij

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09/07/26

French farmers receive €50/t to buy nitrogen until Sep

French farmers receive €50/t to buy nitrogen until Sep

London, 9 July (Argus) — The French government today announced financial support for farmers to buy nitrogen fertilizers, with payments of at least €50/t for purchases until the end of September. The scheme aims to offset price increases since the start of the war in the Middle East, and to "preserve our productive capacities and secure the 2027 harvests", the government said. The announcement already triggered increased farmer buying of fertilizers today. Farmers will receive at least €50/t for purchases of straight nitrogen fertilizers. Where fertilizers account for more than 10pc of a farmer's operating costs, the payments rise to €70/t. Payments are capped at 50pc of farmers' nitrogen consumption from 2025. The scheme applies to purchases between 1 June and 30 September. At the end of the period, a report will review the fertilizer price development. The European Commission has allocated €107mn for the payments, which France may top up to a total of €145mn. Nitrogen fertilizer prices in Europe rose significantly after the start of the war. French granular urea prices rose by 50pc between the end of February and mid-April, to an average of €753/t fca. Prices then fell below pre-war prices again, to €470/t fca by 2 July, but are now once again on the rise. By Claudia Wlk Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

South Korean Young Poong's zinc smelter catches fire

09/07/26
09/07/26

South Korean Young Poong's zinc smelter catches fire

Singapore, 9 July (Argus) — A fire broke out at South Korean conglomerate Young Poong's 728,000t/yr Seokpo zinc smelter in North Gyeongsang province at around 12:36 local time (03:36 GMT) today, according to local media and market participants. The fire is understood to have started within the smelter and prompted a level one response from local fire authorities because of concerns over a potential release of hazardous gases. Firefighters have been deployed to evacuate nearby residents and conduct search operations. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, market sources said. Young Poong supplies most of its sulphuric acid volumes to the domestic market, with an estimated 200,000t/yr exported through the Donghae port, largely under term contracts with traders. Any disruption to sulphuric acid production would likely impact domestic availability. The company did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publishing. By Deon Ngee Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Mosaic to further curtail US, Brazil phosphate output

08/07/26
08/07/26

Mosaic to further curtail US, Brazil phosphate output

Houston, 8 July (Argus) — US fertilizer producer Mosaic today said it will further reduce its phosphate operations at select North American and Brazilian facilities because of curtailed raw material supply availability. The reduced availability is due to traffic still largely halted through the strait of Hormuz . Further temporary operational measures are being taken by Mosaic as sulfur inventories decline, while supply availability and fertilizer affordability remain constrained, the company said in a statement. "These actions are a temporary response to extraordinary market conditions and do not change the company's long-term strategy or commitment to global agriculture," Mosaic said. Mosaic will further reduce output at its Bartow, Florida, plant and Faustina, Louisiana, facility, which saw its operating rates reduced earlier this year. Production at Mosaic's Riverview, Florida, plant and Uncle Sam, Louisiana, facility will now also be reduced. Multiple customers have said they expect a full halting of operations at the Faustina plant because it was idled earlier this year, while Bartow operations could continue at a reduced rate if the sulfur supply outlook becomes more positive. But no specifics from Mosaic were provided on the scale of the operational pullback at any one plant. In Brazil, additional temporary curtailments and idling of facilities are underway after the producer idled and closed SSP production and mine activity in April. In May, the producer also paused Brazilian phosphate rock production. The additional curtailment news also comes nearly a week after the US government announced it would pause countervailing duties on Moroccan phosphate imports for eight months, opening the door for the return of OCP phosphate tonnes into the US market after Mosaic in 2011 alleged the countries' imports materially injured the US market. In May, the producer announced it would withdraw its 2026 phosphate production guidance of at least 7mn metric tonnes (t) and had initiated steps to curtail production at plants in Louisiana and Florida, alongside scaling back output in Brazil. The reduction in phosphate operations was also a direct result of limited raw material supply availability from the ongoing conflict in the Mideast Gulf, which has forced domestic and global phosphate producers to reduce output. By Taylor Zavala Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US, Iran threaten to escalate hostilities: Update

08/07/26
08/07/26

US, Iran threaten to escalate hostilities: Update

Updates with details throughout Washington, 8 July (Argus) — The US and Iran on Wednesday said the interim deal they signed last month is effectively over as they threatened to escalate attacks following overnight exchanges of fire in the Mideast Gulf. "As far as I'm concerned, it's over," President Donald Trump said of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding he signed on 18 June. Trump, in public remarks during meetings with foreign leaders on the sidelines of a Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, said he will order the Pentagon to carry out another round of strikes against Iran and that he may reimpose a naval blockade on Iranian trade. Trump said he does not "want to deal" with the Iranian leadership anymore, describing them as "scum" and "sick people." But he appeared to keep the door open to a continuation of talks with Iran, of which there have been several rounds since the signing of the agreement. "Terrorist Trump officially announced that the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding has ended," said Iranian news agency Tasnim, which is affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). "Continuing the understanding that Trump has also officially declared dead is logically and rationally wrong." Tehran will fully close navigation through the strait of Hormuz and respond strongly to any further US attacks, state news agency Press TV said. The resumption of intense clashes between the US and Iranian militaries sent oil prices higher . August Nymex WTI rose by $4.86/bl, or about 7pc, to $75.30/bl as of 11am ET. Trump, who had touted the decline in crude futures since the US-Iran interim deal was signed in June, acknowledged on Wednesday that the flare up in conflict would reverse the trend. "Any time we hit them, it goes up a little", Trump said about crude futures. "Maybe we'll do some other things that would lift it a little bit, but I don't think it's going to lift it a lot at all," Trump said. The 18 June interim deal was supposed to usher in a 60-day ceasefire and trigger a process to gradually reopen the strait of Hormuz for commercial shipping. The US military carried out strikes on Iranian defense targets late on 7 July, following Iranian attacks on vessels travelling along the strait's southern corridor. The IRGC said it retaliated with drone and missile attacks at US military installations in the Mideast Gulf, including the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain and at the Ali al-Salem air base in Kuwait. The 18 June deal called for the strait of Hormuz to fully reopen to commercial traffic, and for Tehran to receive limited sanctions relief in return. But key terms are unravelling well ahead of the 21 August deadline that the countries set to thrash out the final details of a peace agreement, including the fate of Iran's nuclear program. The US on Tuesday also revoked authorisation to allow purchases of Iranian crude, refined products and petrochemicals. By Nader Itayim, Prethika Nair and Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

S Africa sulphur imports fall by 68pc, acid output cut

08/07/26
08/07/26

S Africa sulphur imports fall by 68pc, acid output cut

London, 8 July (Argus) — Sulphur imports to South Africa in the first five months of 2026 have dropped by 68pc, with only about 56,300t imported compared with 174,183t in the same period in 2025. The decline was driven by the sudden halt and then return of Middle East cargoes, which typically account for the vast majority of South Africa's sulphur imports. In January-May 2025, imports included 62,600t from Kuwait, 40,000t from Oman, 38,500t from Saudi Arabia and 31,500t from the UAE. Only one Middle East sulphur cargo was delivered into South Africa in the same period this year — about 55,000t in February — as imports from all key Gulf producers have been absent since 27 February, when the US-Iran conflict started. South Africa's domestic sulphur market has also faced competition from the Copperbelt mining sector. Following the outbreak of the conflict, mining companies moved quickly to secure sulphur supplies, often paying premium prices for material from the US Gulf Coast, Vancouver, the Black Sea and other export regions. South African consumers linked to the chemicals, fertilizer, paper and pulp sectors in comparison have been forced to reduce operating rates at a time of limited sulphur availability. Higher logistics costs have added to the strain. Following diesel price increases in March and April, trucking rates for a round trip between Richards Bay and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), before returning to Durban, peaked at about $1,000/t. Trucking freight costs from Richards Bay to Kolwezi in the DRC rose to about $600/t, reducing the route's competitiveness compared with backhaul options through Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Supply tightness was particularly evident in April when no sulphur warehouse stock in Richards Bay was available, as the amounts were already committed to downstream buyers. As of June, several sulphur cargoes have been able to discharge into Richards Bay but sulphur availability outside of committed volumes still remains tight. Sulphuric acid shortages add further pressures Major South African fertilizer and sulphuric acid producer Foskor shut down operations in March on the back of sulphur shortages, preventing margins for fertilizer sales. Foskor typically supplies the local sulphuric acid market in South Africa as well as exporting volumes to the Copperbelt. South Africa's oil refiner Sasol — which also produces sulphur and sulphuric acid — was rocked with an unplanned immediate shutdown at one of its facilities in March, preventing any sulphuric acid production, and is understood to be in maintenance until August, further tightening regional acid availability. By Fenella Rhodes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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