The Chinese government released its 2013 fertilizer export duty rates this week. Urea export duties will be lowered from 7 percent to 2 percent July through October. The government made no mention of changing the duty of 110 percent for the rest of the year.
The 2 percent figure is the base rate for urea exports. The rate is progressive, working off the new benchmark price of RMB2,260 (US$362.49)/mt. The 2012 benchmark was RMB2,100/mt (US$336.83/mt).
Beijing also dropped the DAP and MAP export duty from 7 percent to 2 percent for the months of June through September. The rest of the year the rate will be 110 percent.
As with urea, the export rate is based on a benchmark price of RMB3,500 (US$561.37)/mt for DAP and RMB3,200 (US$513.29)/mt for MAP. These new prices represent an increase from the 2012 numbers.
The government also lowered the rates for NPKs to 80 percent throughout the year from the 2012 number of 110 percent January through September and 95 percent October through December.
The government has engaged in selected months for lower export duties to discourage exports during periods of strong domestic demand. In the past, strong international demand drove up the price of urea and phosphates in the domestic market. The increase in fertilizer prices were not matched with a corresponding increase in payments farmers received for their products. At the same time the government began cutting off subsidies to producers and farmers.