The pesticide industry will face a year of more challenges and reforms, the China Crop Protection Industry Association (CCPIA) said.
As China officially rolls out its new environmental protection law to regulate the industry and promote transformation, a number of small and medium-sized pesticide enterprises have been shut down for maintenance since the beginning of the year, and an “extensive adjustment” is in store for the pesticides industry in 2015, according to CCPIA.
This January, the China Agrochemical Price Index (CAPI) started at 83.95, which is down 4.72% from the end of last year and a steep fall of 15.63% year on year. In February — which is affected by Chinese New Year — the market saw more falling prices. The CAPI dropped to 81.28, down 3.18% from January and down 19.31% year on year.
“This is the ‘omen’ of industry reform and transformation. After the continuous fall in price, the industry will gradually welcome new busy seasons of production and sales. The CAPI is expected to go up in March and it is ready to rebound from the bottom,” CCPIA said.
In January, the herbicides CAPI was 76.41 — below 80 for the first time — and down 8.85% from last month and down 24.95% year on year. In February, the CAPI was 74.64, down 2.33% compared to the last statistical period, and off 27.64% year on year.
Since the beginning of the year, the price of glyphosate has consistently been under RMB 20,000 per tonne and has been falling slowly. By the end of February, the price had already fallen 12.61% from the end of last year to RMB 19,400 per tonne, a sharp decline of 37.42% year over year. The glyphosate market is still in “low steady operation,” CCPIA said, “which has brought great pressure to companies and also new challenges to the market adjustment.”
With the upcoming peak season in March, glyphosate sales are expected to grow. Domestic output of paraquat has increased from last year, but the price has declined sharply to between RMB 67,000 and RMB 69,000 per tonne, which, to some extent, has contributed to the fall of the CAPI of herbicides. Among other herbicides, the price of 2,4-D TC saw a relatively significant fall. After falling two consecutive months, it fell 26.92% compared to the end of last year. There is no significant change in the prices of other major herbicides.
In January, the CAPI of insecticides was 92.43, a slight increase of 1.77% month on month and basically flat year on year; in February, the CAPI was 87.63, down 5.19% month on month and down 8.84% year on year. Among insecticides, abamectin, imidacloprid, chlorpyrifos and triazophos saw a fall in price. Chlorpyrifos, which has the highest proportion in insecticides, saw the biggest fall. In February, its price fell 15.23% compared to the end of last year, which dragged down the CAPI of insecticides to a large content. Prices of most insecticides fluctuated within a normal range.
In January, the CAPI of fungicides was 99.62, a slight fall of 0.59% from last month and 1.11% from last year; in February, the CAPI was 99.13, down 0.49% from last month, but a slight rise of 0.30% from last year. Among fungicides, carbendazim, prochloraz, etc. saw a relatively significant fall of between 7.0% and 10.0% in price; the price of epoxiconazole jumped by 11.16% from the end of last year. Prices of most fungicides fluctuated within a small range and the change was small.
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