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Four major factors have pushed the price of spring plowing fertilizers to run at high levels. Experts suggest that relevant departments should take long-term comprehensive measures based on the characteristics of domestic supply and demand and the structure of my country's fertilizer industry to ease the severe situation of the fertilizer market. It is currently the off-season for fertilizer use in most parts of my country. However, many fertilizer dealers have made early purchases based on the judgment that spring plowing fertilizers will still rise in price, which has promoted the recent fluctuations in the prices of major fertilizer varieties. After investigation, the reporter analyzed that factors such as international market pull, rising production costs, lack of production resources, and export pull will push the price of spring plowing fertilizers to continue to run at a high level. A relevant person from China Agricultural Production Materials Group Corporation said in an interview with reporters: At present, the domestic ex-factory price of urea has exceeded the upper limit of 1,725 yuan/ton, the current ex-factory price of diammonium phosphate has reached 3,200 yuan/ton, the ex-factory price of domestic potassium chloride (62% crystalline) is as high as 2,280 yuan/ton, and the ex-factory price of compound fertilizer is 2,600 yuan/ton, which are more than 20% higher than at the beginning of 2007. Due to the excessive export quantity of diammonium phosphate, imported resources have not yet been purchased due to price inversion, which may lead to a situation where there is no supply of diammonium in the Northeast, Northwest and other regions, which directly affects agricultural production. He believes that if freight, warehousing fees, interest and reasonable profits of dealers are added, fertilizer prices may stabilize and rise when the peak agricultural fertilizer season comes this spring. Four major factors have driven the price of spring plowing fertilizers to a high level. One is the pull from international market prices. Affected by the continued reduction of inventories and strong demand from the biomass energy industry, international agricultural product market prices continue to rise. Among them, farmers in countries such as Brazil and the United States have continued to increase agricultural investment due to the stimulation of the biomass energy industry. India adopts high subsidies from the central government to encourage farmers to increase the use of chemical fertilizers. The above factors have caused a boom in the international fertilizer market. By the end of 2007, the FOB Black Sea price of urea had reached US$400/ton, a year-on-year increase of 30%. ; The US Gulf FOB price of diammonium phosphate is US$520/ton, a year-on-year increase of 100% ; The CIF price of potassium chloride in Brazil and Southeast Asia also increased by more than 30% year-on-year. The prices of crude oil, natural gas and other fertilizer raw materials in the international market will remain at a relatively high level, and the cost of fertilizer production remains high. At the same time, rising international shipping costs will also increase the pressure on fertilizer prices in the international market. my country is a major consumer of chemical fertilizers, and the rising prices of chemical fertilizers in the international market will support the high prices of chemical fertilizers in the domestic market. Second, the cost of chemical fertilizer production has increased. On the one hand, the prices of energy and raw materials necessary for fertilizer production have increased. Chemical fertilizers are typical high-energy-consuming, resource-based products. In 2007, there was great pressure to increase the price of coal, electricity, gas and other energy sources in the domestic market. The ex-factory price of monoammonium phosphate, a raw material required for the production of fertilizers, rose from 1,800 yuan/ton at the beginning of the year to 3,100 yuan/ton, and sulfur also increased by more than 100%. Rising prices of energy and raw materials will inevitably drive up the production costs of fertilizer companies. On the other hand, the transportation costs of raw materials and products of fertilizer companies are also increasing. Starting from April 10, 2006, the average freight rate of railway cargo has been raised from 8.61 cents/ton-kilometer to 9.05 cents/ton-kilometer. In addition, on November 1, 2007, the domestic prices of gasoline, diesel and aviation kerosene will each increase by 500 yuan per ton. plus * * The problem of overloading in road transportation will be strengthened. These factors will lead to an increase in transportation costs to a certain extent. Third, fertilizer production is limited by resource scarcity. Our country is typically deficient in phosphorus and potassium. * * , there is currently a serious shortage of potassium resources, production can only meet 1/3 of domestic demand, and most of it relies on imports. Due to the small amount of potash fertilizer that can be independently priced, the price of potassium fertilizer in the domestic market can only closely follow the price of imported potassium fertilizer, resulting in my country's lack of say in the pricing of imported potassium fertilizer. my country's phosphate fertilizer production can only meet about 70% of domestic agricultural demand, and the rest relies on imports. Among them, the import volume of diammonium phosphate products accounts for 25% to 30% of world trade volume. Fourth, the driving role of exports is highlighted. Fertilizer prices at home and abroad are upside down, and the prospects for the fertilizer export market are promising, making fertilizer manufacturers and dealers highly motivated to export. Taking the Indian market as an example, as nitrogen fertilizer prices in the Middle East and Russia remain high, Chinese nitrogen fertilizer prices are very competitive in the Indian market. The Indian market has become the main market for China's nitrogen fertilizer exports this year. Driven by fertilizer exports, the shortage in the domestic fertilizer market has been further aggravated, and fertilizer prices have been steadily rising. Experts offer response suggestions Relevant experts believe that the continued rise in fertilizer prices will have a negative impact on agriculture. Li Guoxiang, a researcher at the Institute of Rural Development, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said in an interview with reporters: Rising fertilizer prices are not conducive to farmers increasing production and income, affecting farmers' enthusiasm for growing grain, which in turn affects the * * of food security. He said that in recent years, agricultural production has had bumper harvests year after year, and the prices of agricultural products have also increased. The majority of farmers have tasted the benefits of increased income, and their enthusiasm for growing grains has increased. Chemical fertilizer is one of the main agricultural products for farmers, accounting for a large part of the cost of agricultural production. The rise in the price of chemical fertilizer will dampen farmers' enthusiasm for growing grain. In this regard, relevant experts put forward the following suggestions to ease the severe situation of the fertilizer market:: Control the export of fertilizer resources. Ban the export of chemical fertilizers such as urea and diammonium phosphate ; Suspension of export tax rebates for urea, diammonium phosphate and monoammonium phosphate ; We will continue to impose seasonal temporary tariffs on urea exports and strictly control the export of other fertilizer varieties. Do a good job in commercial reserves of chemical fertilizers during the off-season. The fertilizer off-season reserve system is of great significance to ensure farmers' fertilizer needs in the peak season. It must strictly implement the supply of supplies to ensure true quantity and reliable quality, thereby ensuring the supply of fertilizers in the market. Do a good job in ensuring the production and supply of chemical fertilizers. Fertilizer manufacturers must go all out to increase fertilizer production while ensuring safety. ; Ensure that the transportation of fertilizers and related raw materials is prioritized to ensure transportation needs ; Facilities should be given to areas lacking fertilizers in terms of transport capacity ; Agricultural supplies distributors must work hard to increase supply and improve circulation efficiency. Further strengthen fertilizer price monitoring. The price monitoring department should conduct a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of domestic fertilizer production, transportation, demand, sales and inventory changes during spring plowing and summer sowing, timely and comprehensive grasp of the operating situation and price trends of the fertilizer market, and accurately analyze and predict the supply and demand situation and future price trends of the international fertilizer market to provide * * Decision-making provides practical suggestions to ensure the smooth and efficient operation of the fertilizer market. Further guide domestic powerful enterprises to enter the international potash and phosphate fertilizer resource markets and capital markets, and carry out international strategic development of potassium and phosphorus resources. On the one hand, through policy support, we encourage powerful domestic enterprises and groups to directly enter the international potassium resource mining market. ; On the other hand, our country can try to participate in the equity development of important foreign potash and phosphate fertilizer production companies and cooperate in capital, thereby taking a certain initiative in the market.