Traders warn of rise in price of chemical fertiliser

The strait is a strategically important channel for many oil-exporting nations in the Persian Gulf.
Plengsakdi Prakaspesat, president of the Thai Fertiliser and Agricultural Marketing Association, said fertiliser traders are very concerned about the conflict between the United States and Iran over the latter’s enrichment of nuclear material, as it could drive up fuel prices, resulting in higher prices for chemical fertiliser this year.
Unstable farm outputs due |to the effects of climate change, and high rice prices due to the government’s rice-pledging scheme, will also increase demand for and prices of |fertiliser this year, Plengsakdi said.
“Demand for fertiliser is expected to increase by 5-10 per cent this year to ensure flourishing production and high returns for farmers under the pledging project,” the association president said.
According to an Agriculture Department report, chemical fertiliser output was 5.7 million tonnes last year. Of that amount, about 200,000 tonnes was exported and the remainder used domestically.
Plengsakdi said the price of fertiliser would remain unchanged in the short term, while the price of Urea had dropped in the past month as the end of the rice-growing period is nearly upon us.
The Internal Trade Department reported the price of Urea dropped from US$476.25 (Bt14,835) per tonne in December to $427.50 this month.