Half-Year Controls Expire, Filing Resumes on 1 September
From 14 March 2026, China applied phased export controls to agricultural phosphate fertilisers and phosphate-bearing compound fertilisers, covering monoammonium phosphate (MAP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), single superphosphate and agricultural compound fertilisers containing phosphate, operated on a “zero inspection declaration, zero approval, zero release” basis. The controls expired on schedule on 31 August, and normal export filing resumed on 1 September.
The purpose of this round was to protect spring planting. Once the spring and summer application peak passed and the domestic fertiliser market moved into the autumn off-season, there was room to ease the export policy.
Resumed Filing Is Not Free Export
According to industry analysis published by Salt Lake Information Network and Zhongyan Puhua on 1 September, the easing uses a “licence plus annual quota” model. Quotas go first to producers that have completed domestic supply obligations and have high historical verification rates; the total volume is coordinated by the competent authority, with priority given to domestic autumn planting demand.
Several thresholds remain in place at the export stage:
- Tariffs: under the current tariff schedule the fertiliser export duty rate is zero, and finished fertilisers are not on the list of goods subject to export licence administration.
- Tax rebate: from 1 April, the VAT export rebate rate for agricultural MAP, DAP and similar products was adjusted from 13% to 0.
- Statutory inspection: all phosphate fertiliser categories are subject to customs statutory export inspection — inspection first, then export, and non-conforming cargo may not be exported. The inspection cycle is about 7 to 10 working days.
- Raw materials: exports of industrial sulphuric acid have been banned from 1 May until the end of the year; phosphate rock remains under export licence administration as an upstream raw material.
The detailed quota allocation rules and the pace of the export window are still subject to formal notice from the competent authority. As of publication, no announcement text from the Ministry of Commerce or the General Administration of Customs on this adjustment had appeared in public channels; the content below is compiled from industry media and information agency reports.
The Domestic-International Price Gap Is the Main Driver
According to the Agricultural Materials and Market price report of 1 September, ex-works quotes for 55% powdered MAP in Hubei were RMB 4,200–4,350/t and mainstream ex-works quotes for 64% granular DAP in Hubei were RMB 4,800–4,850/t, with discounts of RMB 50–80/t available on firm orders. Estimates of the international-to-domestic DAP price gap range from RMB 800 to 1,150/t depending on the institution. Exchange rates, shipping schedules and quote conventions all create differences, so check each institution’s own methodology note before citing the figure.
One cost input has moved in the opposite direction. The same 1 September report shows granular sulphur at Zhenjiang port falling about 17% within the week. Sulphur is the main raw material for phosphate fertiliser, and the high prices of the first half squeezed industry margins; this decline eases cost pressure, but it also weakens the case for finished product prices to rise further.
Transmission to Phosphate Rock Procurement
Once phosphate fertiliser exports resume, operating rates should recover and pull phosphate rock demand up with them. Several points on that chain are worth watching:
- The time lag is longer than the policy itself. What resumed on 1 September is inspection and customs filing; order negotiation, port accumulation and loading still take time. Shengqi Chain judges that large-scale export shipments will not be released in volume until mid to late October.
- Phosphate rock prices are still high. Zhongyan Puhua notes in its report that phosphate rock feedstock prices are holding firm at high levels, providing cost support for finished fertiliser prices.
- The relative value of domestic and imported rock will move. Higher operating rates first lift demand for high-grade rock; if domestic quotes rise in response, the cost-performance of imported rock has to be recalculated.
- Policy could tighten again. Domestic supply security remains the first priority; if autumn and winter fertiliser restocking exceeds expectations or domestic supply tightens, export policy may be adjusted again.
For buyers of imported phosphate rock, the demand shift from resumed exports is a slow variable; in the short term, phosphate rock quotes and ocean freight matter more directly. For the relevant calculation, see How to Calculate the Landed Cost of Imported Phosphate Rock.
What Procurement Should Watch Next
- Formal notice on quota and licence rules, which determines the volume exports can reach.
- Actual export shipment data in mid to late October, which will show whether the price gap benefit materialises.
- Movements in phosphate rock and sulphur quotes, which together drive fertiliser producers’ willingness to run.
- The statutory inspection cycle of about 7 to 10 working days — export contracts should write inspection filing and customs clearance status into the delivery terms.
Sources: Agricultural Materials and Market, “Fertiliser Morning Price Report” (1 September 2026); Salt Lake Information Network; Zhongyan Puhua, “2026 China Phosphate Fertiliser Industry Panorama Study” (1 September 2026); SMM market news, 28 August. Quota and licence rules are subject to formal notice from the competent authority.