World urea demand continues to be strong, and has nudged international prices higher this week, with India paying +/- $285 in its latest tender. India has purchased around 750,000 metric tons of urea, and now Pakistan has returned to the market, notes Matt Bohan, international product manager for CHS. "That country was recently able to move ahead of India to get cheaper Arab Gulf tons. Now Indian buyers have had to pay more for August and September tonnage in order to attract Chinese and Ukrainian producers back into the market."

Increased corn acres and strong corn demand for ethanol production are two of the domestic factors that are contributing to stronger fertilizer markets, says David Asbridge, president of NPK Fertilizer Advisory Service, based in Chesterfield, Mo. Today’s higher-yielding hybrids also demand higher fertilizer application rates to maximize yield, notes the former USDA economist, business analyst for CF Industries and chief economist for the American Soybean Association.

Last week saw a flurry of ammonia sales, and prices in Illinois markets moved close to the $500 mark. But ammonia producers are taking a cautious approach to sales, which frustrated some would-be buyers who couldn’t lock in product. "Producers are probably trying to make sure they don’t oversell for fall," says Scott Manwarren, domestic product manager for CHS. "With the system so empty from spring, and the Magellan pipeline still down for maintenance, there are some concerns about whether the system can be fully restocked for the fall season."

The Mosaic Co. says it will be forced to close the company’s South Fort Meade, Fla., mine and lay off 221 workers if a federal judge rules in favor of environmental groups that have sued to block expansion of the company’s Florida phosphate operations.

Fertilizers developed by a University of Louisville biologist could help speed the biological breakdown of oil and hasten the healing process from the BP disaster in the Gulf. Ron Atlas, who helped clean up the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska in 1989, has developed a combination of slow-release pellets and liquid to promote the growth of oil-eating bacteria.

Next month Vale S.A. plans to officially open its new phosphate mine in northern Peru. When fully operational, it will annually produce 3.9 million metric tons of phosphate rock. Brazilian-based Vale, which owns one of the world’s largest iron ore mines, has been moving into fertilizer production in the past few years and also owns a potash mine there. This is the company’s first venture into the international phosphate market.