The majority of the fertilizer industry gathered in Monaco for the annual IFA conference this week. But participants left the gathering with few signals as to urea price direction for the months ahead.
Urea prices stabilised and ticked slightly higher in Brazil earlier in the week, but levels were once again lower, falling alongside barges in the US. East of Suez, the downwards pressure was more notable, with more vessels carrying urea crossing the strait of Hormuz, further sales out of Iran at $340/t fob and falling export prices in China. Middle East spot prices for granular urea dipped to $360-400/t fob for the week, with southeast Asian levels down to $410-420/t fob. Egyptian granular urea prices were framed at $405-420/ t fob for Europe through the week, with producers unwilling to entertain lower bids.
