Urea prices in the Middle East have trended down, with granular urea falling to around $370/t fob and below.
Indications for granular urea prices have slipped to around $370/t fob Middle East and below, with bids heard this week at $360/t fob for April-loading cargoes, down from $375-385/t fob last week.
The dip is in line with the latest sale from southeast Asia — Indonesia's Kaltim concluded 45,000t of granular urea at $377.50/t fob Bontang for loading next month in a 21 March tender. Southeast Asian urea typically holds a premium to Middle East product given the freight differential to Australia and other regional markets. Falling prices from Egypt, which enjoys a 6.5pc duty advantage over Middle East urea to Europe, not to mention a clear freight advantage, have also weighed on Middle East prices. Argus assessed granular urea at $369-373/t fob Egypt to Europe on Monday, with unconfirmed reports of business at $365/t fob today.
A delayed tender issuance from India, with expectations initially appearing in early February, and the restart of Iranian urea production this month — after outages since December — have hit market sentiment in March.
