State-owned QatarEnergy Marketing has raised its July Qatar Sulphur Price (QSP) by $85/t to $890/t fob Ras Laffan/Mesaieed from $805/t fob in June.
Freight rates as of 25 June were $125-140/t for a 30,000-35,000t shipment to Chinese ports. This implies a delivered cost of $1,015-1,030/t cfr, with additional insurance premiums raising prices further on a delivered basis.
Vessel traffic through the strait of Hormuz has recovered in June, with more than 800,000t from previously loaded Middle East sulphur shipments crossing the strait, according to Argus estimates, and the majority under earlier sales or contracts. This has eased the most extreme stock shortages among major consumers, but the market remains very short due to delivery delays and production outages. Spot availability is limited to 2-3 Middle East shipments in trader hands.
The number of LNG vessels holding positions near Ras Laffan have spurred optimism that QE could be preparing for a production ramp-up at the terminal following drone attacks and damage to the production facility.
