DTN Fertilizer Trends
Urea, Anhydrous Lead Retail Fertilizer Prices Lower
OMAHA (DTN) -- Retail fertilizer prices continue to be lower, according to prices tracked by DTN for the third week of June 2020. This marks the second week in a row that all eight major fertilizers are lower compared to last month.
Nitrogen fertilizers are leading the way lower. Urea is down $27/ton, or 7%, from last month with an average price of $360/ton. Anhydrous is 5% lower with an average price of $464/ton, a drop of $26/ton. DTN considers a price move to be significant if it's over 5%.
The remaining six fertilizer are slightly lower. DAP has an average price of $405/ton, down $4; MAP $429/ton, down $5; potash $363/ton, down $4; 10-34-0 $468/ton, down $1; UAN28 $233/ton, down $4; and UAN32 $273/ton, down $7.
On a price per pound of nitrogen basis, the average urea price was at $0.39/lb.N, anhydrous $0.28/lb.N, UAN28 $0.42/lb.N and UAN32 $0.43/lb.N.
In a report titled "Essential Fertilizers Ride the Coronavirus Storm," Julia Meehan, Independent Commodity Intelligence Services (ICIS) Managing Editor, Fertilizers, wrote about the effects COVID-19 has had on the global fertilizer market. For the most part, the industry has seem limited effects from the pandemic.
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With the COVID-19 pandemic starting in China, that country saw the first impact in terms of cuts to fertilizer production as well as transportation. The biggest impact was on phosphoric acid, which is used to produce phosphate.
"As China has eased its way out of the lockdown, the flow of all fertilizer has recovered very quickly and life is getting back to normal again," Meehan wrote.
As the virus spread around the world, many countries started to feel the full impact during a time when much fertilizer was being applied, particularly in the Northern Hemisphere, she wrote. While there was some pressure on pricing in April and May, the fertilizer sector did not see sharp declines like those in the gas, oil and petrochemicals sector.
"Fertilizer makers have benefited from cheap feed and energy costs, meaning that even marginal producers have continued to operate, and the markets have not felt any shortness of availability," she wrote.
Meehan wrote the outlook for the global fertilizer market remains uncertain amid concerns of a second wave of the virus and what it could mean to the industry. Currency fluctuations, political unrest and high levels of unemployment in both developed and developing nations will have an impact in the months and years ahead.
The good news is the world will need to be fed, and the fertilizer industry will continue to be deemed essential, she wrote.
Retail fertilizers are all lower in price from a year ago. Anhydrous is 21% lower, MAP is 19% less expensive, DAP is 18% down, urea is 17% lower, both UAN28 and UAN32 are 14% less expensive, potash is 7% lower and 10-34-0 is 4% lower from last year at this time.
DTN collects roughly 1,700 retail fertilizer bids from 310 retailer locations weekly. Not all fertilizer prices change each week. Prices are subject to change at any time.
DTN Pro Grains subscribers can find current retail fertilizer price in the DTN Fertilizer Index on the Fertilizer page under Farm Business.
Retail fertilizer charts dating back to 2010 are available in the DTN fertilizer segment. The charts included cost of N/lb., DAP, MAP, potash, urea, 10-34-0, anhydrous, UAN28 and UAN32.
DRY | ||||
Date Range | DAP | MAP | POTASH | UREA |
Jun 17-21 2019 | 496 | 532 | 392 | 435 |
Jul 15-19, 2019 | 497 | 532 | 392 | 430 |
Aug 12-16 2019 | 493 | 503 | 387 | 413 |
Sep 9-13 2019 | 486 | 482 | 385 | 407 |
Oct 7-11, 2019 | 472 | 473 | 383 | 403 |
Nov 4-8 2019 | 462 | 471 | 384 | 396 |
Dec 2-6 2019 | 445 | 463 | 379 | 381 |
Dec 30-Jan 3 2020 | 438 | 446 | 376 | 363 |
Jan 27-31 2020 | 414 | 435 | 373 | 359 |
Feb 24-28 2020 | 409 | 434 | 371 | 366 |
Mar 23-27 2020 | 409 | 434 | 370 | 382 |
Apr 20-24 2020 | 410 | 433 | 370 | 385 |
May 18-22 2020 | 409 | 434 | 367 | 387 |
Jun 15-19 2020 | 405 | 429 | 363 | 360 |
Liquid | ||||
Date Range | 10-34-0 | ANHYD | UAN28 | UAN32 |
Jun 17-21 2019 | 487 | 589 | 270 | 318 |
Jul 15-19, 2019 | 485 | 585 | 275 | 317 |
Aug 12-16 2019 | 475 | 543 | 258 | 295 |
Sep 9-13 2019 | 471 | 516 | 253 | 289 |
Oct 7-11, 2019 | 470 | 509 | 253 | 289 |
Nov 4-8 2019 | 473 | 499 | 249 | 289 |
Dec 2-6 2019 | 470 | 490 | 242 | 276 |
Dec 30-Jan 3 2020 | 470 | 487 | 238 | 273 |
Jan 27-31 2020 | 467 | 488 | 237 | 275 |
Feb 24-28 2020 | 466 | 490 | 235 | 277 |
Mar 23-27 2020 | 466 | 491 | 235 | 278 |
Apr 20-24 2020 | 468 | 492 | 236 | 279 |
May 18-22 2020 | 469 | 490 | 237 | 280 |
Jun 15-19 2020 | 468 | 464 | 233 | 273 |
Russ Quinn can be reached at russ.quinn@dtn.com
Follow him on Twitter @RussQuinnDTN
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