By Ryan Hanrahan
Politico’s Rachel Shin reported that “Morocco’s state-owned OCP has returned to the U.S. phosphate fertilizer market after President Donald Trump suspended countervailing duties on the company in June, a spokesperson told POLITICO on Friday, with its first shipment already landing in New Orleans.”
“The president declared an emergency earlier this summer arguing that constrained fertilizer supply threatened America’s agricultural production and food security,” Shin reported. “Accordingly, he lifted the more than 16 percent countervailing duties applied to OCP that had been keeping the Moroccan phosphate fertilizer giant from exporting to the U.S.”
“The company told (Politico’s) Oliver (Ward) that 54,000 metric tons arrived in the U.S., the first shipment since the duties were lifted,” Shin reported.
“Phosphate fertilizer prices have been rising since February and are heading into the late summer planting season higher than at any point in the last two years, according to Agriculture Department data, driven in large part by lingering supply chain disruptions in the Middle East affecting the availability of key fertilizer inputs, like sulfur,” Shin reported. “Agriculture groups have been pressing the administration to take steps to bolster domestic supply.”
“OCP North America said in a statement that while it welcomes the temporary tariff relief, ‘greater long-term certainty’ would better support investment in its U.S. offerings and ‘help ensure adequate fertilizer supply for American farmers over time,'” Shin reported.
Source : illinois.edu