As we noted earlier in the week, urea markets have been firm since December, with prices in the US Gulf having jumped nearly 21% since the beginning of the year. This week saw the market cool. While demand is evident, buyers paused and were not prepared to meet earlier price increases. The slight change in…
Iran is set to benefit from a relaxation in sanctions that have restricted oil and urea exports. The temporary removal of certain sanctions was first announced by the P5+1 countries at the end of November, with the intention restated ahead of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos last week. The latest interim accord will…
“The general level of urea prices is increasing and this trend is expected to continue into Q1 2014….demand in the West, North America and Europe, has been deferred with the recent price recovery having caught many markets off guard. Given that the preferred grade for Europe and North America is granular, this product has the…
Despite ups and downs in the US over the last week, urea markets remain firm. With price increases witnessed in all major export areas and markets, the Nitrogen Index moved up three points. The increase of three points this week is modest compared to those of the last two weeks – over 6 and 10 points…
Last week saw BP publish the Fourth Edition of the influential Energy Outlook series, setting out the energy giants’ expectations for global energy to 2035. Of particular relevance to long term nitrogen markets and trade, the report offers a useful overview of the world’s gas supply and consumption to 2035. Nitrogen markets are inextricably tied…
The last two years have seen numerous nitrogen capacity projects announced, with many of these located in North America. If all projects were built, Profercy estimates that global nitrogen capacity could increase 40% by 2018. However, many projects fail to break ground and production is never realised. Our latest long term forecast for urea, The…
Profercy’s World Nitrogen Index increased by a massive 10 points this week on the back of strong gains in global urea prices. With both the US and Europe competing for urea, fob prices for Egyptian granular urea surged by $40pt. The latest Indonesian sales tender for granular product saw a price increase of over $60pt…
The Profercy World Nitrogen Index saw the biggest increase in over a year this week. With US demand and escalating barge prices attracting supply from the Middle East, Malaysia and China, global granular urea prices saw a marked increase. The key granular urea elements in the Nitrogen Index, Middle East fob and Egyptian fob prices,…
The last full week of business in 2013 has been relatively quiet. Following the run-up in prices in recent weeks, Yuzhnyy prilled urea prices and Egyptian granular urea prices fell back. Despite an increase in Profercy’s price range for Yuzhnny ammonia, the Profercy World Nitrogen Index fell back to just over 170. A more detailed…
As the holiday season approaches, this extended blog entry briefly reviews the fortunes of nitrogen products throughout 2013. Utilising Profercy’s World Nitrogen Index, the review primarily focuses on urea, which makes up the majority of nitrogen used worldwide. 2013 saw nearly 7 months of falling urea prices sandwiched between two bullish phases. For more information on…