Fertilizer Prices Rocketing in Vietnam due to China's Export Tax Hikes

Prices of almost all kinds of fertilizers are surging sharply in Vietnam just as China, the country’s biggest fertilizer exporter, raised its export fertilizer tax by 100 per cent to 135 per cent, the Vietnam Fertilizer Association (VFA) said.

 

A bag of Chinese DAP is now VND1.2-1.3 million compared to VND1 million just recently, while Chinese nitrogenous fertilizer has gone from VND380,000 to as much as 450,000.

 

Similarly, the different kinds of Canadian fertilizer commonly used in Vietnam have increased between 10 per cent and 30 per cent in a month.

 

The VFA said local companies have imported enough fertilizers for this summer-autumn crop. However, the increased prices will affect local farmers because it is the peak time for fertilizer use in Mekong Delta region, the VFA said, warning of possible low quality fertilizers on local market.

 

The association called on the government to take measures against speculation.

 

The VFA suggested the government order banks to lend the money for expanding fertilizer production on a massive scale.

 

Furthermore, it should freeze coal exports from July 1 so that Vietnam’s few existing fertilizer producers can get enough coal for their needs without paying too high a price. (Saigon Liberation, The People)