Fertilizer prices have mainly moved sideways in recent weeks, but on average there has been an increase over the last period. But despite the fact that calm has returned to the fertilizer market, volatile energy prices continue to hang like dark clouds over the fertilizer sector.
The past few weeks, and the near future, have normally been quiet in terms of the fertilizer trade. This year is no different so far. Every now and then farmers purchase some fertilizer, but the volumes remain limited. Despite the price movements of last season and the relatively low price for calcium ammonium nitrate (KAS) that currently applies, the purchasing strategy has not changed, the trade reports.
Exactly one year ago, nitrogen fertilizer reached the sky-high price level again after having done so earlier that spring. Nearly €90 (and in some cases even more) per 100 kilos was paid for KAS that week. Now - a year later in the same week - that is only €35,80 per 100 kilos according to the fertilizer quotations from Farmers4All.
Although prices are considerably lower than last year, KAS has risen considerably in percentage terms compared to earlier this summer. The lowest price level was €30,05 in week 26. If you compare that with the current week 37, that is a price increase of 19%. In recent weeks the price has mainly moved sideways.
Urea price
Nitrogen fertilizer prices fell this spring for various reasons, but the abundant supply was the main factor. Unlike in the spring of 2022, due to the wide supply, a lot of nitrogen fertilizer was sold at a price that was below production costs. Now that supply and demand have to find each other again and energy prices are less high and volatile than before, a clearer market price can be formed again. The global price of the nitrogen fertilizer urea also plays a role in this, which has risen somewhat in recent weeks. Compared to this spring, urea on the world market has already increased by 50% in total. Due to the increase, other nitrogen fertilizers such as KAS are also increasing in price. That translates into an increase of 19%.
Fertilizer has now been produced in Europe for some time now, using both domestically produced ammonia and imported ammonia. Yet production remains uncertain given volatile energy prices, especially natural gas. As the energy or ammonia price on the world market changes, fertilizer producers will redetermine their strategy and adjust their production accordingly. This also means that production costs could suddenly rise sharply, but a price drop could just as easily occur, although the latter is not obvious given the concerns about the gas supply in Europe in the coming winter.