Urea sales rise 108% year-on-year

DAP demand falls 35% as subsidy issues hamper imports

KARACHI: Urea off-take increased 108% year-on-year in May 2017 to a total of 521,000 tons, according to sales data of the National Fertiliser Development Centre (NFDC).

On the other hand, di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) sales showed a decline of 35% year-on-year to 69,000 tons, mainly due to reduced demand across the industry. Traders have been reluctant to import DAP as the government has not yet addressed subsidy disbursement issues.



The Fatima Group outperformed other companies in urea sales during May with sales rising 414% (74,000 tons compared to 14,000 tons in May 2016). It was followed by Engro Fertilisers with sales up 101% year-on-year at 139,000 tons and Fauji Fertiliser, which sold 223,000 tons, up 89%.

Cumulatively, in the first five months of 2017, urea off-take improved 37% year-on-year to 1.69 million tons. Despite the strong improvement, urea inventory in the overall industry continues to remain sticky at 1.70 million tons, according to a JS Research report.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 1^st, 2017.

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