Turkey's ammonium sulphate (amsul) imports reached a record 1.02mn t in the first half of this year, up by over 79pc on the year, despite little to no change in domestic demand.
High amsul imports were probably driven by an even higher volume of amsul exports from China, which accounts for practically all of Turkey's receipts, according to trade data. Amsul deliveries to Turkey totalled over 966,000t in January-April, an almost 115pc increase on the year. Imports then fell by 44pc on the year in May-July to just over 84,000t.
China's amsul exports have risen from just over 5.2mn t in 2015 to 17.13mn t in 2024 — the highest on record — driven largely by domestic capacity expansions. Exports in the second half of the year have always surpassed those in the first half, typically driven by deliveries to Turkey and Brazil ahead of their peak seasons spanning December to February. Brazil is largely a compacted amsul market, while Turkey takes both grades but prefers standard material for domestic use. China exported close to 10.59mn t in the second half of 2024, a 2.5mn t increase on the year.
Amsul re-exports grow
Amsul re-exports from Turkey rose to just over 145,000t in January-July, up from nearly 30,000t in the same period last year. Egypt was the largest recipient this year with over 46,000t, followed by Ukraine on just over 23,000, the data show.
The availability of more amsul in Turkey earlier this year allowed for the higher re-exports. Imports of Chinese amsul carry a 6.5pc duty in the EU. Importing directly from China also often requires buyers to commit to much larger volumes ahead of time.
At the same time, Turkey's urea imports have remained largely steady this year, indicating little to no swapping between the two nitrogen fertilizers.
Turkish buyers returned to the amsul market earlier this month, bidding in the low $160s/t cfr with 180-270 days' credit for standard amsul against the latest offers for October and November shipment cargoes at around $170/t cfr with 180-270 days' credit. Compacted amsul offers were indicated in the high $180s/t cfr with similar credit and shipping terms.
