Urea and DAP prices continue to slip on weak sentiment

摘要

West European urea demand is adequately covered and supply is assured with around 515,000t/month expected to be available in the first quarter out of Egypt, Russia and Algeria. Moreover, with most short positions now covered, this excess supply is weighing on market sentiment, pressuring prices downwards. A spike in the value of the euro to $1.09 towards the end of this week pushed prices down further, which may encourage some buying. In Germany, prices have slipped by around ?20/t and in France by ?10/t since our last report. DAP prices have also continued on a downwards trend, falling by around $20/t in Germany/Benelux markets amid strong seller competition and lacklustre demand.