Trade in phosphate rights is all emotion

The trade in phosphate rights picked up last week unexpectedly hard. As a result, dairy farmers and traders withdrew their offers, with the aim of achieving higher prices at a later date. There was hardly any supply available at the end of last week.

Change over the weekend
Ultimately, prices reached €205 per right, although according to traders and commission agents, relatively little volume was traded at this level. The market turned around over the weekend, due to growing supply. As a result, (potential) buyers in turn adopted a wait-and-see attitude.

The result is that the market has dropped again to price levels around €200 per right. Some traders claim that prices fell through this 'psychological limit' again on Wednesday afternoon, May 30. Others contradict this. In any case: the current trend is downward rather than upward. However, compared to last week, the DCA quotation for phosphate rights increases by €7 to €199,50 per right.

(Text continues below the chart)The price of phosphate raw materials rose considerably in May. 

Relative stability
The erratic market is characteristic of the emotional attitude of buyers and sellers. At the slightest thing, the market takes a turn up or down. Although it is difficult to give an expectation, it is likely that the market is now taking a breather. How long it lasts depends on various factors, such as: the weather, the... milk price and any letters to parliament.