BRAZILIAN FERTILIZER MARKET
"According to ANDA, deliveries in the Brazilian fertilizer market totaled 13,022 thousand metric tons in 3Q18 versus 11,663 thousand metric tons in 3Q17, an increase of 11.7%, driven by the deliveries of soybean.
Deliveries totaled 25,856 thousand metric tons in 9M18, 4.3% up on the 24,795 thousand metric tons in 9M17. Nitrogen fertilizers fell by 5.4%, while phosphate and potassium fertilizers increased by 1.6% and 3.9%, respectively.
Domestic fertilizer production totaled 2,155 thousand metric tons in 3Q18, 2.2% down on the 2,204 thousand metric tons in 3Q17, while in 9M18 it came to 5,930 thousand metric tons, 4.8% down on the 6,226 thousand metric tons in 9M17. In the analyzed period, phosphate fertilizer production fell by 2.5%
Fertilizer imports totaled 7,876 thousand metric tons in 3Q18, to meet the period’s higher demand, 8.9% up on the 7,233 thousand metric tons in 3Q17. In 9M18, fertilizer imports slightly fell by 1.4%, from 19,174 thousand metric tons to 18,901 thousand metric tons, reflecting the current inventory levels, which are smaller than the inventory levels recorded in the same period in 2017. Phosphate fertilizer imports fell by 6.9%
(The company’s) Delivery volumes fell …… due to difficulties related to ……the higher prices of fertilizer raw materials compared to the two previous years. ……In the last six months of 2018, the price of fertilizer raw materials increased significantly in the international market……From early 2017 to September 2018, MAP increased by approximately 36% in the international market……
In 2018, the Company expects the seasonality observed in Brazil’s fertilizer market to be different from recent years, with approximately 37% of the year’s total volume being delivered in the first half and nearly 63% in the second half.
Brazilian fertilizer consumption will grow by approximately 2% in 2018, to 35.0 million metric tons. The main reasons for the 4.3% growth in deliveries in 9M18 were deliveries for soybean……"