INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Primary fertiliser sales volume during first four months of FY22 registered 11 per cent declinePrimary fertiliser sales volume during first
four months of FY22 registered 11 per cent decline compared to 4M FY21, mainly due to the base effect as during H1 FY21 fertiliser sales
witnessed an upsurge owing to panic buying by farmers following Covid-19 pandemic led lockdown.Rating agency ICRA said the overall rainfall
which determines the sowing pattern has so far been normal in the current south-west monsoon season with a shortfall of only 2 per cent in
line with the prediction of IMD.During June, the rainfall was 10 per cent above the long period average (LPA) while it was 7 per cent below
LPA in July.As for the distribution of rainfall, it has been rather uneven across regions -- the southern peninsula has witnessed higher
rainfall than LPA while the east and the northeast has witnessed a shortfall of 13 per cent.Sabyasachi Majumdar, Senior Vice President and
Group Head at ICRA, said panic buying by farmers in light of Covid-19 pandemic lockdown had led to record sales in the kharif season of FY21
which petered off during the rest of the year as inventory de-stocking at farmer level led to lower offtake in H2 FY21.The overall kharif
sowing this year is down only 2 per cent as of the week ending August 6, posting a smart recovery after being down 22 per cent by end of
June following the monsoon rains.Moreover, reservoir levels across regions remain healthy which augurs well for sowing during the upcoming
rabi season."While the overall fertiliser sales volume decline looks steep in the current kharif season, we expect the sales volume for full
FY22 to be only marginally lower than FY21," said Majumdar.As for fertiliser production volumes, they have largely remained stable in 4M
FY22 compared to 4M FY21 whereas imports have declined by 16 per cent.The combined (production and import) volumes have declined by only 6
per cent in 4M FY22 whereas the retail sales have declined by 11 per cent, indicating availability of fertiliser inventory with fertiliser
companies.However, with limited availability of DAP in international markets and steep rise in import prices, availability for the upcoming
rabi season will remain a key monitorable as the situation may further exacerbate with China banning fertiliser exports.
