News & Insights

I spent this week in Santiago to visit with market participants following CESCO week to catch up on the latest developments. Last week's conversations were dominated by sulphuric acid, overtaking copper as the primary topic, following China's ban on sulphuric acid exports from May to December, as first reported by Acuity Commodities two weeks ago. Last year, China was the largest supplier to Chile, accounting for close to 1.5m t, or 37% of the the 4m t Chile imported. Howeve

The sulphuric acid market is going through an uprecedented period. Supply and demand are disrupted by a range of factors, while logistics through the Strait of Hormuz remains largely blocked, with just one sulphur vessel transitting yesterday. This is contributing to a sharp rise in FOB, freight and CFR values. The pressure is being felt by every participant along the supply chain. I am still in China and did not attend Cesco , but sulphuric acid was clearly the talk of the t

I long anticipated global government intervention at the sulphur and sulphuric acid level, as it was clear from the outset that the Middle East conflict would heavily disrupt flows of oil, gas, fertilizer and petrochemicals – all part of the sulphur and sulphuric acid supply chains. That said, it has come a little sooner than I expected. Perhaps this reflects how sulphur and sulphuric acid have become strategic raw materials for a growing range of industries over the past cou

Caustic Soda: Global dislocation drives North American pricing higher Global caustic soda markets firmed sharply through March as disruption tied to the US/Israel–Iran conflict constrained vessel availability, lifted freight costs, and reduced operating rates across parts of Asia. Northeast Asia export pricing increased to $510–560/t (dry) FOB, while US Gulf Coast exports moved to $440–530/t (dry) FOB. US Gulf Coast barge pricing followed higher, assessed at $490–500/st (dry

Canada is home to the largest sulphur inventory globally. As of the end of November 2025, inventory at the Syncrude oil sands operation in the Fort McMurray oil sands region stood at just over 9.9m t. Amid a global sulphur supply disruption due to the Middle East conflict, many people have asked us why can't this quickly be moved to market to provide incremental tonnage? The answer lies in logistics and infrastructure. Under existing conditions, sulphur cannot move as crush

You’ve read plenty about how the Middle East conflict could force phosphate fertilizer producers to curtail operations due to affordability issues, but truth be told, we have not reached that crisis point yet. Instead, the real panic is unfolding in Southern Africa right now. Key phosphate producing countries outside the Middle East have just enough stocks to last quite some weeks. Many also have well-established logistics to move sulphur to their consuming sites, so the chal

Since I received a lot of reactions to my post yesterday, I decided to share my views on the Middle East conflict’s impact on the sulphuric acid market as well. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀. The shipping industry has effectively self-imposed restrictions on Hormuz transits, as insurers cancel war risk cover for vessels operating in the Gulf, pushing risks to unacceptable lev

Let's go straight into it. My view on how the US-Israel attacks on Iran are impacting the global sulphur market for now. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘂𝗹𝗽𝗵𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀, due to severe disruption to traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Sulphur exports from Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are effectively on hold. The impact on sulphur trading depends on how long the conflict lasts and how long t

Prices have been up in the sulphur market for some months now, but this is the first time in many weeks where I sense sentiment is turning more cautious. I want to share with you what I said in our 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘨: 𝘚𝘶𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘶𝘳. As price levels inch closer to the last historical highs, there are continued worries over demand destruction. This comes on the back of Tampa molten sulphur settling at $495.69/lt DEL for 1Q, which is the highest quarterly Tampa settlement since 3

Yesterday, Acuity's Vancouver FOB spot assessment surpassed $500/t FOB for the first time in our 10-year history. This means the only time it was higher was in 2008! Meanwhile, negotiations around the Tampa molten sulphur quarterly contract price for 1Q are slowgoing. The sell side is watching ongoing global price increases to support a significant increase from the 4Q25 level of $310/lt DEL. The buy side is pointing to unworkable economics with the DAP Nola barge price curr

2026 is off to a hectic start all around the world. We spent the first days of January analysing all the macro factors that may have short- to long-term impact on the sulphur and sulphuric acid markets. It's a long read. In late December, China’s state-owned PetroChina and Sinopec agreed to sell sulphur to key phosphate producers at parity prices under existing long-term agreements as part of food security measures. The impact this may have on import sulphur deals into China

Lots of discussion around Venezuela crude moving to the US and its impact on sulphur production! It will largely come down to how much Venezuelan crude will be imported and replacing other barrels, therefore dictating the overall crude slate. Back in 2019 when US sanctions on Venezuela were put in place, a notable decline in US sulphur production was seen due to less heavy crude utilization, particularly in the US Gulf Coast. This was the primary driver for US sulphur produc