AKI: the price of several fertilizers fell significantly

Fertilizer prices exceeded last year’s level by 10-40 percent in the first three months of 2023, but urea is barely more expensive than a year ago, and superphosphate is a little cheaper. The previous significant increase in prices and supply problems also reduced demand, domestic sales decreased by 39 percent in one year. The change in demand was also caused by the fact that the EU is trying to reduce the nitrogen and phosphorus levels in the soil and natural waters, so producers are looking for new solutions. For example, organic fertilizer is more and more in demand, but in addition to nutrient supplementation, the maintenance of soil life and the provision of moisture content have also increased in value. They added that sales of plant protection products fell by a similar amount, by 37 percent year-on-year. Only the sale of fungicides did not change, while those of insecticides and herbicides decreased significantly, and the prices of the products almost without exception rose significantly, up to over 50 percent.

Based on the 2022 data, the turnover of agricultural machinery and equipment increased by 65 percent compared to the previous year

Farmers and agricultural enterprises bought a total of HUF 385 billion last year. The HUF 80 billion purchase of spare parts exceeds the turnover of the previous year by 12 percent. Agricultural producers continued to spend the most on the purchase of power machinery, which accounted for 61 percent of the total value of agricultural machinery investments last year. Of the total sales, tractors accounted for 36 percent and grain harvesters for 13 percent, but at the same time interest in fruit and grape care machines grew significantly, the summary reads.

MTI