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Urea price trends across China on February 18 Author/Source: Business Society Date: 2020-02-18 Clicks: 26 The domestic urea market continued to show a stable trend with slight increases in some areas. On the demand side, the need for fertilizers in spring has begun to increase in some areas. Farmers in regions such as Shandong, Hebei, and Jiangsu are actively purchasing fertilizers. However, due to logistical difficulties, urea from other provinces has a limited impact on these regional markets. In terms of the industrial sector, demand is recovering slowly; plywood factories remain mostly shut down, and the overall operating rate of compound fertilizer factories is also low, resulting in limited demand for urea. It is expected that the domestic urea market will remain stable in the short term, with only slight price increases in some areas. Going forward, attention will be focused on logistics and transportation as well as the resumption of operations in downstream industries. Due to the overall poor logistics situation, road transportation for manufacturers in various regions is relatively restricted, while rail transportation is still feasible; some suppliers ship their goods to nearby areas, resulting in relatively stable prices. There is rigid demand in downstream agriculture, while industrial demand is recovering slowly. Zhuochuang expects the urea market to remain price-driven in the near term, with attention paid to the recovery of transportation across various regions. Today, the urea market in Shandong remains stable, with active purchases for agricultural use and industrial demand meeting needs as it arises. For enterprises within the province, the mainstream ex-factory price for small and medium-sized particles is 1,650–1,710 yuan per ton, while the typical transaction price ranges from 1,640–1,690 yuan per ton; demand for industrial use remains moderate. The ex-factory price for large particles is 1,850 yuan per ton. In the Linyi and Heze markets, production of boards and compound fertilizers has resumed at low levels. The wholesale price for use in industrial applications is 1690–1710 yuan per ton, while the wholesale price for agricultural use is 1720–1730 yuan per ton. It is expected that the market will remain in a state of consolidation in the near future. Hualu Hengsheng’s medium-sized particles are priced at 1700 (a 20% increase); Hebei Dongguang’s small-sized particles are priced at 1640 (stable); Henan Xinlianxin’s particles are priced at 1650 (stable); Shanxi Fengxi’s particles are priced at 1600 (a 20% increase); Jiangsu Linggu’s particles are priced at 1740–1750 (stable); Anhui Haoyuan’s particles are priced at 1670–1700 (stable); Inner Mongolia Boda has suspended its price announcements; Shaanxi Shanhua’s products are priced at 1670 for local sales and 1600 for external sales (a 20% increase); Xinjiang Yankuang’s products are priced at 1350 after resuming production. The ex-factory price for small and medium-sized particles in Shandong region is 1,650–1,720 yuan per ton, while the typical transaction price ranges from 1,630–1,670 yuan per ton. Linyi region: The purchase price for small and medium-sized particles is 1,710–1,720 yuan per ton. Heze region: The reference price for small and medium-sized particles is 1,700–1,720 yuan per ton. Since the weekend, some companies have raised their prices by 10–20 yuan per ton. In Hebei region, the factory price for small particles is around 1,640–1,690 yuan per ton, while the prevailing transaction price is around 1,620–1,640 yuan per ton. Again, since the weekend, some companies have increased their prices by 10–20 yuan per ton. In Henan region, the prevailing factory price for small and medium-sized particles is 1,640–1,680 yuan per ton; prices remain stable. In Anhui region, the prevailing factory price for small particles is around 1,700–1,750 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Jiangsu region, the prevailing price for small and medium-sized particles is around 1,720–1,750 yuan per ton; a few companies have raised their prices by 10 yuan per ton since the weekend. In Shanxi region, the price for small particles for external distribution is around 1,600–1,610 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Inner Mongolia region, the prevailing price for small and medium-sized particles for external distribution is around 1,480–1,500 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Shaanxi region, the prevailing local sales price for small and medium-sized particles is 1,640–1,670 yuan per ton, while the price for external distribution is 1,590 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Guangxi region, the prevailing wholesale price for small and medium-sized particles is around 1,850–1,860 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Sichuan region, the factory price for small and medium-sized particles is around 1,750–1,800 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Guangdong region, the prevailing wholesale price for small particles is around 1,850–1,930 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Xinjiang region, the prevailing transaction price is around 1,350–1,370 yuan per ton, with prices remaining stable. In Jilin region, the price for small particles containing urea is around 1,750–1,790 yuan per ton. Prices remain stable. The transaction price for small-grained urea in Heilongjiang is around 1750–1800 yuan per ton; prices remain stable as well. The freight cost for small-grained urea in Liaoning is 1720–1770 yuan per ton, with the actual transaction price subject to negotiation. Prices remain stable; there is a slight cooling down in the agricultural market in North China, industrial demand is recovering slowly, and prices at the higher end have dropped slightly. At present, the first round of agricultural fertilizers is still being distributed to lower-level channels, with more supplies to follow in subsequent stages. Last week, the low-end products from factories in Shanxi were sold well at competitive prices; this week, some of these factories have raised their prices. The inventory levels at factories in Inner Mongolia remain high. There are rumors that some companies in this sector plan to resume production, but the exact timing has not been determined yet. Market prices in the south remain relatively stable, with only slight fluctuations as a result of changes in prices at upstream factories. Industrial demand has begun to recover gradually since the weekend, and there has been no significant change in demand for now. Overall, inventory levels at upstream factories remain relatively high; prices are likely to stay stable in the short term, and close attention should be paid to the progress of industrial production resumption.