Fertiliser availability and prices may take 3-4 months to normalise due to disruptions in natural gas, petroleum derivatives, and shipping lanes. Ammonia prices might stabilize soon, but sulphur prices could remain high longer. India has enough urea but faces pressure on DAP supplies.
India faces economic vulnerability due to the US-Iran conflict, impacting its focus on Fuel, Fertiliser, and Forex. Rising global prices for oil and fertilisers strain finances, while a falling rupee pressures foreign exchange reserves. Experts debate structural risks and policy responses.
US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins testified that dependence on China for agricultural inputs poses an existential threat to national security and liberty, while defending a reduced $20.8 billion 2027 budget request amidst farmer pressures from tariffs, the Iran war, and supply disruptions.
A Swiss startup, VunaNexus, has developed a technology to transform human urine into a certified liquid fertilizer called Aurin. Initially seen as unconventional, the process gained traction due to soaring fertilizer prices and supply chain issues following the Russia-Ukraine war. The technology is being implemented in buildings across Europe and has roots in a pioneering project in South Africa.
Australia has imported 1 million tonnes of fertilizer since the Middle East war disrupted trade, prompting the government to streamline biosecurity processes. Fears of food price hikes were addressed by securing additional shipments and an investment in domestic production.
Australia has imported 1 million tonnes of fertilizer since the Middle East war disrupted trade. The government streamlined biosecurity processes to ensure supply for the winter crop, with plans for further shipments and domestic production.
India's fertiliser supply chain is strained by the West Asia conflict disrupting shipping via the Strait of Hormuz. Combined with a below-normal monsoon forecast and El Niño conditions, this threatens crop output, food inflation, and India's economy, potentially widening the trade deficit and weakening the rupee.
India's Great Nicobar Island project gains strategic attention amid the Hormuz blockade, potentially disrupting Chinese supply chains and alleviating the 'Malacca dilemma'.
India's Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted the need to monitor fuel, fertilizer, and foreign exchange amid the US-Iran conflict. The ongoing crisis is impacting India through rising energy and fertilizer prices, straining fiscal estimates and foreign exchange reserves, despite the economy showing resilience.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman emphasized a focused strategy on fuel, fertiliser, and foreign exchange (3Fs) to manage external economic stress, citing Prime Minister Modi's call to conserve forex and reduce discretionary imports like gold.
The Iran war is causing stagflation and starvation due to reduced oil and fertilizer supplies, with potential for a global economic shock. Rising bond yields could pop the AI bubble, and petrol prices may reach $10 a gallon this summer.
Top Indian fertiliser companies have collectively tendered to buy 5,93,500 metric tonnes of sulphur, a key component for phosphatic fertilisers. This move signals preparedness for ongoing global supply disruptions and rising prices, particularly due to the West Asia conflict.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper warns of a global food crisis due to frozen fertiliser shipments via the Strait of Hormuz due to the war in Iran. She urges immediate action to free up supplies, highlighting impacts on developing nations and the need for global partnerships.
India's PM urges citizens to consume less fuel, fertiliser, gold, and curb travel due to surging global energy prices and war in Iran, signaling a shift from neoliberal globalization towards strategic economic management.
China Electric Power News reports on a new carbon capture technology by Jiangnan Environmental Technology that uses ammonia to convert sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide from coal emissions into fertilizer, offsetting capture costs.
China's ban on sulphuric acid exports, driven by Middle East supply disruptions from the Iran war, is causing a crisis for Australian manufacturers like LoomTex, forcing difficult choices on stocking hazardous chemicals or facing production halts.
David Malpass' comments come as US President Donald Trump and China's Xi Jinping are due to meet in Beijing.
A team in China has designed a catalyst that can transform nitrate pollution from agricultural and industrial waste water into ammonia – the chemical backbone of urea fertiliser – with nearly three times the efficiency of conventional catalysts. The study detailing this breakthrough was published on March 18 in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, where it was showcased on the front cover. It has opened the door to a low-energy waste-to-resource technology that could one day strengthen...
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsNewsflash: Global food prices have risen for the third month running, as the Iran war drives up the price of energy and fertiliser.The United Nations’ FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) shows that prices of a basket of food commodities rose by 1.6% in April, adding to price rises in February and March.The price increase was further supported by expectations of reduced wheat plantings in 2026, as farmers shift to less fertilizer‑intensive crops amid high fertilizer prices, driven by elevated energy costs and disruptions linked to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.International palm oil prices rose for the fifth consecutive month in April, largely underpinned by prospective higher demand from the biofuel sector, supported by policy incentives in several producing countries and higher crude oil prices. Additional upward pressure stemmed from concerns over lower production in Southeast Asia in the coming months.The drop in April was mainly driven by expectations of ample global supplies in the current season, reinforced by improved production prospects in key Asian producing countries, notably China and Thailand. The onset of the new harvest in Brazil’s key southern growing regions under favourable weather conditions further contributed to the overall decline in international sugar prices. Continue reading...
Conflict in the Middle East is threatening the coming planting season, a UN official has warned, as countries already reeling from fertiliser shortages and surging costs face shocks to food security. The Strait of Hormuz, a major global chokepoint for fertilisers and other agricultural inputs as well as oil, has been under blockade since the start of joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February. Despite rising concerns over the impact of the conflict on global food production, China – supported...
Powerful property and farming firm Grosvenor Group says knock-on effect of Iran war could arrive next yearFertiliser shortages caused by the Iran war have driven up costs for UK farmers by up to 70% and will have a “dramatic” impact on food prices globally next year, according to one of Britain’s most powerful property and farming companies.Mark Preston, executive trustee of the 349-year-old Grosvenor Group, controlled by the Duke of Westminster, said fertiliser “was already quite expensive” before the 50% to 70% surge in prices since the start of the Iran war in late February. Continue reading...
Powerful property and farming firm Grosvenor Group says knock-on effect of Iran war could arrive next yearFertiliser shortages caused by the Iran war have driven up costs for UK farmers by up to 70% and will have a “dramatic” impact on food prices globally next year, according to one of Britain’s most powerful property and farming companies.Mark Preston, executive trustee of the 349-year-old Grosvenor Group, controlled by the Duke of Westminster, said fertiliser “was already quite expensive” before the 50% to 70% surge in prices since the start of the Iran war in late February. Continue reading...
Asia’s next food crisis is under way. After the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz collapsed, sending shock waves across energy, fertiliser and food systems. Fuel, freight and fertiliser costs are rising sharply, amplified by skyrocketing insurance premiums – feeding directly into the price of every tonne of fertiliser that still reaches the market. The scale of disruption reflects the strait’s outsize role in global trade. It carries around one-third of globally...
