Seaborne export origins
- Middle East, which dominates global seaborne supply
- Vancouver, Canadian west coast
- Black Sea and Baltic Sea
- US Gulf and US West Coast
Sulphur · UN 1350
A recovered by-product moving on an involuntary supply curve
Elemental sulphur trading, specification control and safe carriage, as a dedicated marketing and logistics discipline.
Market structure
Why sulphur behaves unlike any other traded commodity
Supply follows refining and gas throughput, not sulphur demand. Demand is agricultural. Sulphur price cycles therefore decouple from crude.
- Estimated world production, 2024
- 85 Mt
- US recovered sulphur, Jan–Nov 2025
- 6.82 Mt
USGS Mining Review, May 2025
4% lower than the same period in 2024. USGS
Primary demand regions
- China: cfr China granular is a key global reference price
- India
- Morocco and Tunisia, for North African phosphate
- Brazil
Largest end use
Sulphuric acid manufacture
Primarily for phosphate fertilizer production: DAP, MAP and SSP. This links sulphur demand to global agriculture rather than to energy.
Sources: USGS Mineral Industry Surveys · USGS Sulfur Statistics · Argus Sulphur Methodology
Traded product forms
Each form carries its own handling regime and price assessment
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Purity, dry basis | 99.5% min |
| Ash | 0.05% max |
| Moisture | 0.50% max |
The principal internationally traded form. Conditioned for reduced dust and friability, enabling long-haul dry-bulk shipment and repeated handling.
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Purity, dry basis | 99.5% min |
| Ash | 0.05% max |
| Moisture | 0.50% max |
Broken from block or vat-poured sulphur and assessed separately from granular. Higher dust generation on handling.
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Purity, elemental S | 99.9% |
| Moisture | 0.5% max |
| Reduced carbon | 0.1% max |
| Ash | 0.01% max |
| As / Se / Te, each | < 0.1 ppm |
The highest-purity traded grade, moving by barge, pipeline and road tanker over shorter distances.
Specification values are the published product specifications used by Argus Media for its international sulphur price assessments. Source: Argus Sulphur Methodology and Specifications Guide.
Quality & test methods
What is certified, how it is measured, and what the numbers mean
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Bulk density | 1,053 – 1,176 kg/m³ |
| Stowage factor | 0.85 – 0.95 m³/t |
| UN number | UN 1350 |
| IMDG hazard class | Class 4.1, flammable solid |
| Subsidiary hazard | None applicable |
| IMSBC group | Group B, chemical hazard |
Why specification discipline decides the trade
- Moisture drives both weight settlement and corrosion risk: wet residues form sulphurous acid.
- Ash and reduced carbon determine acceptability as sulphuric-acid plant feedstock.
- Arsenic, selenium and tellurium matter to catalyst life in downstream acid plants, hence molten limits below 0.1 ppm each.
- Purity on a dry basis is the contractual quality anchor at 99.5% minimum for solid forms.
| Method | What it measures |
|---|---|
| ASTM D4239 | Sulphur in coal and coke by high-temperature tube furnace combustion. |
| ASTM D2622 | Total sulphur in liquid petroleum and petroleum products by wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence. |
| ASTM D7039 | Sulphur in petroleum products by monochromatic wavelength-dispersive XRF. |
| ASTM D5453 | Total sulphur in light hydrocarbons, motor fuels and oils by ultraviolet fluorescence. |
Sources: IMO IMSBC Code, SULPHUR UN 1350 · ASTM International · Argus Sulphur Methodology
Price benchmarks
Published references against which cargoes are negotiated
Middle East posted prices as at February 2026. These figures are historic reference points, not current offers.
- ADNOC · fob Ruwais
- US$530/t
- KPC · fob Kuwait
- US$520/t
- QatarEnergy · fob Ras Laffan
- US$520/t
+US$10 vs January. OSP for the Indian subcontinent
+US$4 vs January. Kuwait Sulphur Price
+US$3 vs January. Qatar Sulphur Price
Spot
Cargoes sold to load within 40 days of the sale being agreed.
Contract
Volume contracted over a minimum three-month shipping period.
Formula
A pre-agreed calculation using published prices, applied to future deliveries.
| Basis | Coverage |
|---|---|
| FOB | Vancouver, Middle East (excluding Iran), US Gulf, US West Coast, Black Sea, Baltic Sea. Iran is published separately as fob Iran, lump-granular. |
| CFR | China (granular, and molten-lump-granular), India, Brazil, North Africa. |
| CPT | Europe: one assessment covering road-tanker trade. |
| Freight | Approximately 16 route assessments including Vancouver–China, Middle East–East Coast India, US Gulf–Brazil and Baltic–Brazil. |
Sources: World Fertilizer, citing Argus Media (February 2026 assessments) · Argus Sulphur Methodology
Safe carriage
IMSBC Code requirements for SULPHUR, UN 1350
Hazard 01
Dust explosion
Greatest during loading, unloading and hold cleaning. Ventilators need spark-arresting screens, and unsuitable electrical circuits must be isolated.
Hazard 02
Toxic gas on combustion
Burning sulphur evolves sulphur dioxide. Batten down and use the ship's fixed fire-fighting installation. Do not use water.
Hazard 03
Acid corrosion
Wet dust or residues form highly corrosive sulphurous acid. Tank tops and trim plates must be lime-washed or painted, and bilges pumped regularly.
Hazard 04
Segregation & response
Stow "separated from" foodstuffs. First aid follows the IMO MFAG. Fine grained sulphur and flowers of sulphur must not be carried in bulk at all.
Cargo sizing
- Middle East solid sulphur trade is handled largely in 30,000 – 50,000 t vessels.
- Mediterranean cargo sizes typically fall under 10,000 t.
- European molten sulphur moves by barge, pipeline and road tanker, typically 5,000 – 10,000 t.
Sources: IMO IMSBC Code, SULPHUR (UN 1350) · UK P&I Club, Carefully to Carry 2023 · Argus Sulphur Methodology
Contract mechanics
How a sulphur cargo is structured, settled and evidenced
- 01
Pricing basis
- FOB in export regions; CFR in destination markets
- Spot for cargoes loading within 40 days
- Contract over a minimum three-month shipping period
- Formula pricing referencing published assessments
- 02
Vessel & lot
- Handysize to panamax dry bulk carriers
- Middle East trade largely in 30,000–50,000 t vessels
- Minimum 10,000 t for inclusion in international assessments
- Freight assessed across roughly 16 published routes
- 03
Quality & quantity
- Independent inspection by SGS, Bureau Veritas or Intertek
- Certificate of analysis against the contractual specification
- Weight certificate at load port
- Moisture determination affecting settled weight
- 04
Settlement
- Most transactions on a sight or cash basis
- Where credit terms apply, up to 180 days, the cost is subtracted from the published price
- Documentary credits governed by ICC UCP 600
Documentary requirements
- Bill of lading
- Certificate of origin
- Certificate of analysis against the contract specification
- Weight certificate and independent inspection report
- Letter of credit documentation under ICC UCP 600
Incoterms applied
- FOB: seller places cargo on board the buyer's nominated vessel
- CFR / CIF: seller pays freight; CIF adds marine insurance
- DAP: delivered ready for unloading at the named place
- CPT: used for European road-tanker trade
Producer terms
ADNOC publishes General Terms and Conditions for the Sale of Sulphur (July 2021 edition), which confirms a price-differential mechanism relative to market price.
Sources: Argus Sulphur Methodology · ICC Incoterms 2020 and UCP 600 · ADNOC GTC for Sale of Sulphur