Sulphur prices eased this week — but not uniformly, and that unevenness is the real story.
This week's market tape shows a sharp correction on the export side: Vancouver FOB came off $800-840 to $770-780, US Gulf fell from $820-830 to $770-780, and Iranian FOB dropped from $680-720 to $640-660. Middle East FOB (ex-Iran) gave up a full $55, from $740-790 to $680-740. This isn't one port or one seller — it's a near-synchronous softening across FOB origins on both sides of the Atlantic and the Gulf, in the $25-55/t range.
What stands out is China. CFR China (granular) slipped only $20, from $800-850 to $800-810 — less than half the move seen on the export side. China's own domestic price didn't move at all: 4,700-4,800 CNY/t, flat week on week. That's not a demand-collapse picture. It reads more like a supply-side adjustment — freight, producer netbacks, loading schedules — that hasn't yet worked its way into China's domestic market.
Practical read for buyers: a bit of patience on spot tonnage may still pay off, the curve is still pointing down. But a flat Chinese domestic print tells us this looks more like a temporary export-logistics overhang than a structural demand problem. We've seen this November-December pattern before — export side softens, domestic holds — and it typically doesn't last.
For anyone planning granular sulphur coverage into Q1: the numbers are worth a conversation this week.
