China: phosphate fertiliser market

Demand

Demand: agricultural consumption of fertiliser nutrients (N, P₂O₅, K₂O), in tonnes of nutrient. Industrial uses of nitrogen are not included. Official statistics where reported, otherwise graded FertRadar estimates (grades A to D).

Production

Production of fertiliser nutrients (N, P₂O₅, K₂O), in tonnes of nutrient, as reported by countries; gaps filled with graded FertRadar estimates. Not mine output: mine production and capacity are shown separately.

Trade in nutrient tonnes

Tonnes of product converted with the FertRadar nutrient contents (see Methodology, products table).

Net imports (D10)

Imports minus exports of fertilisers in nutrient tonnes, from the FertRadar trade matrix (indicator D10). Raw materials and intermediates excluded.

Grades

A official or provisional, B FAO estimate or imputation, C FertRadar estimate anchored on independent data, D FertRadar statistical estimate.

Mining capacity

Identified capacity at the end of 2024: sum of site capacities from producers' documents or authorities, converted to nutrient. Compared with the USGS country reference.

Official statistics and the producers' own documents only, cleaned and reconciled by FertRadar. Every figure keeps a reference to its document, and every correction to the customs data is documented one by one.

• CEPII, BACI (Etalab Open Licence 2.0)
• United Nations Statistics Division, UN Comtrade
• FAO, FAOSTAT (CC BY 4.0)
• U.S. Geological Survey, USGS Minerals Yearbook (Public domain)
• United Nations Statistics Division, Standard country or area codes for statistical use
• U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries (Public domain)
• Producers and authorities, Annual reports
• Documents cited by the adjustments: CEPII; Chinese State Council (General Office); EuroChem; Interfax; Metals & Mining Intelligence via Vedomosti; OCP Group; Statistics Agency under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan; Uralkali; USGS; Various companies and regulators

The document, page and date behind each figure are listed in the Pro data files. Sources and licences

FertRadar corrects, reclassifies or annotates customs flows only on documented evidence. Those touching this page: 8 context notes and 6 corrections; 3 confirmed by a published figure, 3 estimated.

How FertRadar adjusts the customs data

• Exports, imports and balance (exports minus imports) by nutrient and product family. Raw materials and intermediates are shown apart from fertilisers so as not to mix them.
• Trade figures: CEPII BACI with the FertRadar adjustments listed on this page. Tonnes of product unless stated; kt = thousand tonnes, Mt = million tonnes.
• 2025 is a FertRadar estimate from the monthly customs declarations (UN Comtrade), hatched in the charts. Replaced by the annual data when published.
• Values exclude freight and insurance (FOB equivalent). Unit values are customs averages over shipments under different contracts, not market prices.
• Fertiliser use and production: FertRadar best estimate (FAOSTAT values as reported, gaps filled with graded FertRadar estimates). Grades: A official or provisional, B FAO estimate or imputation, C FertRadar estimate anchored on independent data, D FertRadar statistical estimate.
• Years as reported to FAO (some countries report fiscal or fertiliser years). No forecasts.
• Two kinds of production. Nitrogen (N) and phosphate (P₂O₅): fertiliser production, the nutrient contained in the fertiliser products made in the country. Potash (K₂O): mine output, all uses included. Production of raw materials for all uses (phosphate rock, ammonia, sulphur) is shown on the product and capacity pages.