Nitrogen
Overview
The ease of urea availability east and west of Suez has shaped the current trade flows of this key nitrogen fertilizer. Despite challenges posed by energy prices and military conflicts, key import markets such as India, Australia, and Latin America remain robust. But structural oversupply and the role of China as a swing exporter have led to price volatility as this fast-moving market seeks equilibrium, more so during seasonally high-demand periods.
Our extensive nitrogen coverage includes prilled and granular urea, UAN, ammonium nitrate, and ammonium sulphate. Argus has many decades of experience covering the nitrogen market and incorporates our multi-commodity market expertise in key areas including ammonia and natural gas to provide the full market narrative.
Argus support market participants with:
- Daily and weekly nitrogen price assessments, proprietary data and market commentary
- Short and medium to long-term forecasting, modelling and analysis of urea prices, supply, demand, trade and projects
- Bespoke consulting project support
Latest nitrogen news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global nitrogen industry.
Chinese amsul exports 'expected to continue'
Chinese amsul exports 'expected to continue'
Bali, 1 April (Argus) — China is expected to keep ammonium sulphate (amsul) exports flowing for now, but quotas could still be introduced, according to market participants. Amsul is the only nitrogen fertilizer still being shipped out of China, after restrictions were placed on exports of other products. Delegates at the Argus Asia Fertilizer conference in Bali said amsul exports are likely to continue. The rationale for amsul possible curbs is far from obvious, as the product has limited domestic use, with China relying primarily on urea and ammonium chloride for nitrogen. Standard-grade amsul — largely produced as a by-product of caprolactam — remains a key revenue stream for producers as caprolactam costs continue to rise as the Middle East war continues. Any disruption to exports would lead to storage constraints and increase the financial pressure on producers, market participants said. China's has around 25mn t/yr of amsul capacity and exported just over 21mn t in 2025. Domestic caprolactam operating rates are currently at 80pc. The government halted customs inspections for exports of NK fertilizers on 13 March and ammonium chloride and UAN on 25 March . Urea is routinely subject to customs inspections. But urea exports are currently halted and it is unclear when regular shipments will resume. By Dinise Chng and Upasruti Biswas Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
SE Asia producers launch fertilizer association
SE Asia producers launch fertilizer association
Singapore, 1 April (Argus) — State-owned Indonesian fertilizer producer Pupuk Indonesia, state-owned Malaysian fertilizer producer Petronas, and Bruneian fertilizer producer Brunei Fertilizer Industries (BFI) have announced the formation of the Southeast Asia Fertilizer Association at the Argus Asia Fertilizer Conference in Bali today. The association aims to address regional fertilizer-related issues through a formal industry body and to present a more unified voice on market and policy developments. This includes strengthening food security in the region and to support low-carbon, sustainable agricultural production, said Rahmad Pribadi, chief executive of Pupuk Indonesia. Southeast Asia faces mounting challenges in agriculture, including emissions linked to rice cultivation, which accounts for around 1pc of the global carbon dioxide emissions output. The association aims to promote best practices among farmers in the region, particularly in rice production, said Dr Harri Kiiski, chief executive of BFI. The group will also focus on safeguarding fertilizer supply across the region and supporting a more stable market environment, including for urea in the Asia Pacific region. By Dinise Chng, Huijun Yao Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia forms fertilizer body to tackle supply woes
Australia forms fertilizer body to tackle supply woes
Sydney, 31 March (Argus) — Australia's federal government has announced a new body to manage the impacts of the US-Iran war on fertilizer imports, while easing costs on agricultural exporters by delaying the imposition of a new charge. The fertilizer supply working group will combine key government agencies and industry organisations Fertilizer Australia and the National Farmers Federation (NFF), agriculture minister Julie Collins said today. The group will work on securing access for Australia's sizeable agriculture sector, which sources about two-thirds of its urea from the Middle East , where the strait of Hormuz is effectively closed due to missile and drone strikes on shipping. Additional tasks for the group include working with the competition regulator to co-ordinate and monitor supply and finding alternative sources where possible. The announcement comes a day after Canberra moved to pass laws allowing government agency Export Finance Australia (EFA) powers to underwrite additional cargoes of critical imports , including fuel and fertilizer, because rising risk premiums are challenging independent importers. Cost recovery charge deferred A full-cost recovery model for regulatory services, to be implemented for agricultural exporters, due to be brought in from 1 July will now be deferred by a year to ease costs on the sector, Collins said. The NFF welcomed the measures and said it would lobby for fair long-term cost recovery settings that would not undermine Australia's agricultural competitiveness. Sufficient urea exists in Australia, a major grain exporter, to cover the upcoming winter crop's pre-seeding application, but more imports are needed for topdressing applications starting in June, market sources said. Argus last assessed granular urea at A$1,350-1,420/t ($924-972/t) fca Geelong on 26 March, a A$90 increase on a week earlier. By Tom Major Global urea prices ($/t) Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EPA approves DEF sensor removal
EPA approves DEF sensor removal
Houston, 27 March (Argus) — US diesel engines will no longer be required to have urea quality sensors (UQS) and will revert to using nitrous oxide (NOx) sensors, according to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidance issued on Thursday. That could lead to less diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) — a mixture of urea and de-ionized water, consumption in both road and non-road diesel engines — as the EPA implies a certain level of allowable dilution of urea concentration in DEF supply in special catalyst reduction (SCR) systems. An SCR system uses DEF to neutralize NOx emissions in diesel engines. The standard concentration of urea in DEF is 32.5pc, but the concentration can be diluted further by using lower-quality DEF and leading to small increases in NOx emissions. The agency's previous guidance to reduce inducement penalties, or engine power reductions because of SCR system faults, on users may also cut demand as users will no longer be required to carry an extra case of DEF to avoid engine derating in case of low DEF supply. UQS can detect DEF dilution and quality, but require certain parameters to operate correctly. The EPA determined, via data from the Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association, that UQS have some of the highest failure rates of equipment across SCR systems. As a result, the EPA on Thursday suggested that original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) return to the NOx sensors that were the main sensors present on SCR systems prior to model year 2016 road engines and model year 2017 non-road equipment. The EPA says the fix can be done via a software update through some OEMs. The EPA, in an effort to reduce impact from DEF inducements because of faulty UQS, is encouraging OEMs to seek alternative monitoring technologies to improve robustness of SCR systems. In guidance issued in February, the EPA also affirmed that approved NOx sensor software updates can be installed on existing engines by owner/operators without being treated as tampering under the Clean Air Act. By Chris Mullins Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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