Will take up fertiliser export curbs by China as required, says MEA

The Indian government will take up the matter of squeezing of fertiliser supplies by China and other trade and economic related issues as and when required, a senior official from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

 

He was responding to questions on reports that China has stopped supplies of speciality fertilisers and also restricted exports of urea and Di-Ammonia Phosphate (DAP) to India since the last few months that has aggravated the crisis in key agricultural inputs in the aftermath of the West Asia crisis.

 

The MEA officials also said that on the critical question of stopping rare earth supplies to India from China, the Indian side is in constant touch with their Chinese counterparts to streamline the supplies.

 

Meanwhile, in a related development, reports said that China is looking to ease its ban on export of urea in the light of prices rising due to the West Asia crisis, but the restrictions for India might continue for some more time. 

 

India before the curbs used to import around 1-2 million tonnes of urea from China out of the total imports of around 6-7 million tonnes.

 

That apart, in FY25, it imported around 18 per cent DAP requirements from China, which a year before accounted for almost 39 per cent of the DAP imports.

 

According to Bloomberg, China might relax the limits on exports of the fertilizer from this month.

 

But Chinese companies will still be subject to quotas and, in some instances, minimum prices for shipments, the report said, quoting unnamed sources. Exports to India will still be restricted, the report added.

 

As recently as 2023, China was the world’s biggest exporter of urea, but a ban on overseas shipments was put in place last June to cut domestic prices to aid farmers and bolster food security.