Retail price of potash up 15% from last month; Slightly lower UAN prices

After watching the potash price break through the $ 500 per tonne level and hit its highest level in the past eight years last week, I was curious to take a closer look at potash prices as a whole. of data.

When we started tracking retail fertilizer prices in the first week of November 2008, the potash price was also the highest ever – $ 896 / tonne. Suddenly $ 500 / tonne of potash doesn’t look so bad.

As you may recall, November 2008 turned out to be the peak of fertilizer prices, and prices fell in 2009. In the same week of November 2009, the average retail price of potash was 592 $ / ton. A year later, in November 2010, the price had fallen to $ 508 / tonne.

In 2011, the retail price of potash increased during the year and returned to above $ 600 / tonne. Prices in the order of $ 600 / tonne held up for another year, as the average price in November 2012 was $ 617 / tonne.

Then the price of potash began to slowly decline. In November 2013 the average price was $ 491 / tonne, in November 2014 it was $ 480 / tonne and by November 2015 the price had fallen to $ 430 / tonne.

The fall in potash prices accelerated in late 2015 and through 2016. In November 2016, the average retail price for potash was $ 314 / tonne.

After that, the price of potash remained in the $ 300 / tonne range for several years. From November 2016 to the third week of February 2021 – just over four years – the price of fertilizer never fluctuated much, always staying in the $ 300 / tonne range.

Things changed in the winter of 2021 as retail fertilizer prices started to rise and potash rose to over $ 400 / tonne in the third week of February. And, in the past two weeks, the price of potash has been above $ 500 / tonne.

I guess it’s only natural to see potash prices rise along with the prices of the other seven major fertilizers, given their rise over the past six months. But seeing a potash price starting with something other than a three will take some getting used to.

Retail fertilizer prices have all increased significantly from a year ago.

10-34-0 is now 36% more expensive, potash is 51% higher (last week was 39%), urea is 54% more expensive, UAN32 is 59% higher, anhydrous is 60 % more expensive, UAN28 62% higher, DAP is 71% more expensive and MAP 75% higher than last year.

DTN collects around 1,700 retail fertilizer offers from 310 outlets each week. Not all fertilizer prices change every week. Prices are subject to change at any time.

DTN Pro Grains subscribers can find the current retail price of fertilizers in the DTN Fertilizer Index on the Fertilizer page under Farm Business.

Retail fertilizer tables from 2010 are available in the DTN fertilizer segment. The charts included the cost of N / lb., DAP, MAP, potash, urea, 10-34-0, anhydrous, UAN28 and UAN32.

Russ Quinn can be contacted at [email protected]

Follow him on Twitter @RussQuinnDTN

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