Iodine: Trading
Why Chile's producers effectively set the price
Why Chile's producers effectively set the price What this tab covers How and where it is bought and sold: who buys and sells, exchanges and benchmarks, contract types, the big trading houses and how prices are discovered.Iodine is sold under bilateral contracts between a handful of producers and pharmaceutical, chemical and electronics buyers. Industry publications report spot assessments, which the USGS cites. With Chile so dominant, the pricing policy of its leading producers effectively sets the market. Tilton and Guzmán record a world iodine cartel from 1937, and they note that high concentration lets firms restrict output, at least for a time. Buyers manage risk through long-term supply agreements rather than futures.
Where it is bought (buyers)
- Contrast-media makers in Norway, Germany, Italy and the US
- Pharmaceutical and chemical companies in China and India (24.3% and 13.1% of 2024 import value)
- LCD film makers in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and China
- Salt iodisers and feed premix makers
Where it is sold (sellers)
- Chilean caliche producers (SQM, Cosayach, ACF, Bullmine) from northern Chile ports
- Japanese brine producers
- Belgian converters re-exporting derivatives
- US Oklahoma producers
Exchanges and benchmarks
| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| No exchange market | No futures; nothing on MCX or NCDEX | Prices from bilateral contracts |
Contract types
- Annual and multi-year supply contracts between producers and contrast-media or pharma firms
- Spot sales of iodine prills in drums
- Derivative supply contracts (potassium iodide, iodate)
Top trading houses
- Producers' own sales arms
- Specialty chemical distributors
How prices are discovered
- SQM realised prices in quarterly results
- Spot iodine crystal assessments cited by USGS from industry publications
- US import unit values (USGS)