26/05/18
Pakistani DAP stocks slip in April
London, 18 May (Argus) — A lack of imports saw domestic sales erode Pakistani
DAP stocks in April. But affordability for buyers and suppliers conserving
stocks is putting offtake under pressure. Pakistan began May with 203,000t of
DAP in stock, down by 11,000t from the start of April, according to the National
Fertilizer Development Centre. Pakistan did not import any DAP last month, while
domestic production was typical, at 74,000t. Domestic offtake almost halved to
85,000t, compared with March. But cumulative sales of 376,000t in January-April
remain ahead of previous years, outpacing the average for January-April in
2023-25 by around 51,000t. Pakistani farmers and retailers anticipated that the
globally bullish trend in DAP prices, primarily driven by the war in the Middle
East, will eventually be felt in the domestic market and bolstered their stocks
accordingly. Pakistan is now in its typical off-season, but the drop in offtake
last month also reflects importers conserving their stocks and domestic prices
testing farmers' affordability. Distributors expect DAP offtake to remain under
pressure, seeing farmers prioritise nitrogen and potentially looking to other
sources of phosphate, such as SSP and NPs. Prices for DAP from warehouses at
Karachi have risen by 1,581 rupees/50kg bag — equivalent to around $114/t at
current exchange rates — at the midpoint since the start of 2026. The latest
stock total is in line with DAP inventories at the end of April 2025. But this
is the third consecutive monthly fall in stocks. National DAP stocks had been
growing since the beginning of January at the end of April last year and went on
to grow for another three months. No DAP is lined up to arrive this month. But
importers have lined up 60,000t of DAP, likely to arrive in June. This includes
20,000t of Moroccan DAP and 40,000t of Saudi Arabian DAP . May-June offtake in
2023-25 averaged 201,000t. If no more DAP imports are lined up, and if domestic
offtake and production remain typical, national stocks are likely to remain
largely unchanged by the end of June. If DAP stocks wither as distributors
forecast, this could allow stocks to recover slightly. By Tom Hampson Send
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