Fertiliser trade picks up; announcements loom

By Roger Chesher

INDUSTRY watchers wait and speculate just what the expected “rationalisation before Christmas” might be as “important announcements” still fail to materialise.

Meanwhile, after a marked improvement in business last week, movement is now reported as fast and furious by the trade.

There are two main reasons for this; one, that farmers are coming perilously close to the time of applying the first dressing in both arable and grass sectors; secondly, through lack of confidence, imports are in short supply and granular urea has suddenly taken a price hike into the low £100s.

Deliveries of nitrogen, NPKs and NPs (Early Bite, etc) are moving into both the arable and grassland sector with only eight days to go before the Christmas break on the 23rd, effectively for 12 days until 4 January.

T-Sum 200 typically arrives around 25 January in the south-west, so there are only 29 days left to get the first dressing into the yard.

Prices are firming slightly as farmers are finding it harder to locate deals below the £87/t mark for domestic AN, but still one hears of the occasional merchant offering tonnages below this figure.

They must, say the manufacturers, be taking a loss.

They could, however, be referring to “Import Replacer” sourced from one domestic factory but packaged in white bags, which is still reportedly available.

Blenders are beginning to open their order books at prices at around £100 for 20.10.10. Complex granular 20.10.10 from the majors is around £107/t.

Already the industry is having difficulties in some areas in locating “wheels”.

The much-forecasted shortage of properly qualified hauliers may yet become reality.

CURRENT MARKETS