A Nice Surprise: Phosphate Prices Rose Last Week

Last week, surprisingly, the prices for DAP (diammonium phosphate) saw positive momentum week-over-week at all the four locations discussed below.

Phosphate prices at the Central Florida location rose by as much as 3.5% week-over-week to $322 per metric ton from $311 per metric ton a week ago. Similarly, NOLA (New Orleans) prices rose as much as 2.8% week-over-week to $302 per metric ton from $294 per metric ton a week ago. In Tampa, prices rose as well over the same period. The DAP prices at Tampa rose by 87 basis points week-over-week to $348 per metric ton from $345 per metric ton.

At each of these three locations above, the prices were higher by single digits year-over-year. Central Florida prices were higher by 5% year-over-year. NOLA DAP prices were higher by 7% year-over-year, and Tampa prices were 6% higher during the same period.

Outside North America (MOO), the DAP prices in Morocco rose 1.1% week-over-week to $370 per metric ton from $366 per metric ton. Year-over-year, the prices were up 8%.

In its recent 3Q17 earnings, Mosaic (MOS) reported that phosphate prices were almost flat. PotashCorp (POT) also said during its 3Q17 earnings that the phosphate segment remained a weak area during the quarter. The weakness in phosphate prices, which has been driven by excess capacity, affects these phosphate producers including Agrium (AGU) and Israel Chemical (ICL).

Next, we’ll discuss prices for MAP (monoammonium phosphate) fertilizers.