Chinese squeeze drives up DAP fertiliser prices, spurs West Asia reliance

It's the second-most-consumed fertiliser in India after urea but a significant portion is imported

China’s export restrictions are not just squeezing supplies of niche water-soluble fertilisers, they are a factor in mass market Di-Ammonia Phosphate (DAP) prices rising to almost $800 per tonne in June, the highest in the last few months.

 

High DAP prices could jeopardise the Indian government’s subsidy maths for FY26 and hurt the margins of companies importing such fertilisers (subsidies cover a significant part of DAP prices).

 

India imported around 4.6 million tonnes of DAP in FY25, according to industry sources. Chinese imports were 0.85 million tonnes, or 18.4 per cent, of that amount.

 

But in FY24, India imported 5.6