The Belt and Road project of China’s government is opening good opportunities for manufacturers and traders of fertilisers in the international market. Phosphorus ore export was surging in April 2017, while the export volume of yellow phosphorus remained low in 2017.
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China’s initiative on the Belt and Road project, which aims to tighten the connections along the countries at the ancient silk road from Europe to China, brings also great opportunities for China’s fertiliser industry. The main drivers for the development of China’s fertiliser industry are two important regions. Firstly, the countries in Central and Western Asia in possession of large amounts of natural resources needed for the fertiliser production, like natural gas and phosphorus ore. Secondly, the countries in Southeast Asia with vast agricultural areas and hence s a huge demand for fertiliser.
Attention should be drawn to the issues which exist within the Chinese fertiliser industry. To be mentioned are domestically-produced traditional fertilisers, which are of low added value and struggle in the international market, where there is increasingly fierce competition. Furthermore, major Chinese producers have occupied the majority of the low-end market, but product homogeneity and a lack of innovation are major issues until today.
What’s more, China’s fertiliser industry is now in a critical period of transformation and improvement. Encouraging fertiliser producers which have obtained advanced technologies and well-known brands, and which have sufficient capital, to expand into overseas markets after fulfilling domestic demand not only corresponds with Belt and Road initiatives but also meets the requirements of agricultural supply-side reform.
International trade in April 2017
Many phosphate chemicals exported from China are distributed only to a small number of countries, according to trade analysis firm Tranalysis. For example, phosphorus ore is only exported to countries in the Asia-Pacific region. In April, China exported most of the phosphorus ore to South Korea and some to New Zealand. In March, a number of exports went to Korea even surpassed 84%, while a small amount was shipped to New Zealand and Japan. In February, 100% of China’s phosphorus ore was shipped to Japan. Overall, China’s export volume of phosphorus ore surged more than 132% than compared to the same period last year. The average export price, on the other hand, fell by more than 17% in the last year. Notably, in October 2016 and January 2017 China didn’t export any phosphorus ore at all.
China’s export of yellow phosphorus has different destinations every month. In April around two-third of the exports went to Poland, while the rest went to Japan and Chile. In March, the USA was responsible for the largest share of exports from China, while other destinations have been Japan, Taiwan, and Croatia. February sax exports to Japan and Italy mainly, with a small quantity shipped to South Korea. Since 2017, the shipment volume of China’s yellow phosphorus is much less than it has been in the second half of 2016. The price, however, remained stable during that period.
What’s more, while the export volume of MAP was able to surge by almost 70% year on year in April 2017, the export volume of DAP fell down by more than 20%. The export price of both products fell slightly compared to the same period in 2016, while the one of MAP decreased a bit more than the price of DAP.
About Tranalysis
Tranalysis is an intelligence and analysis provider on import/export data covering over 15 industries in China. For more trade information of pesticides, including Import and Export analysis as well as Manufacturer to Buyer Tracking, contact our experts in trade analysis to get your answers today. For more information about Tranalysis, please visit our website or get in touch with us directly by emailing econtact@tranalysis.com.com or calling +86-20-37616606.