In November
2019, both export volume and export price of glyphosate experienced a drop in
China.
In general,
China exported glyphosate to more than 90 countries and regions in the 11th month of the year. The top 10 importers of glyphosate formulation purchased
19,313 tonnes of glyphosate formulation in total from China, which was equal to
58.01% of the gross export volume in China. In the meanwhile, the USA, Australia,
and Ghana have been the three biggest importers of glyphosate formulation. In
contrast, the top 10 overseas buyers of glyphosate TC imported 20,189 tonnes of
glyphosate TC from China in the same month, which totalled to 95.28% of China’s
gross export volume. Among the buyers, Brazil, the USA, and Argentina were the
top three importers of glyphosate TC.
There were
more than 170 Chinese enterprises exporting glyphosate in November. The top 10 merchants
of glyphosate formulation exported totally 19,405 tonnes of glyphosate
formulation, accounting for 58.28% of the gross export volume in China. The top
three exporters included Zhejiang Wynca Chemical Group Co., Ltd., Xingfa
(Shanghai) International Trade Co., Ltd., and Shandong Weifang Rainbow Chemical
Co., Ltd. In comparison, the top 10 exporters of glyphosate TC sold 19,057
tonnes abroad, in proportion to 89.93% of the gross export volume in China. Fuhua
Tongda Agro-chemical Technology Co., Ltd., Nantong Jiangshan Agrochemical &
Chemicals Co., Ltd., and Youth Chemical Co., Ltd. were the top 3 participants
on the list.
Decreasing demand and overproduction seen as
major attribution to glyphosate’s slump market
The
glyphosate market hit a slump in November. Some market insiders attributed the
main reasons to the decreasing demand of glyphosate and its overproduction in
China.
On one
hand, the trade war between China and the USA had a great impact on the demand
of glyphosate in the American market. Additionally, the fact that more and more
countries, for example Vietnam, Thailand, Austria and France, ban glyphosate,
also strikes the market in a negative way. As a result, the demand of this
chemical is going down, along with the price.
On the
other hand, the value of glyphosate is going down because of the overproduction
in China. For example, Chinese enterprises like Guang'an Chengxin Chemical Co.,
Ltd and Anhui Guangxin Chemical Co., Ltd start to expand its production of
glyphosate even under the strict environmental policy in China and the over-capacity
problem of the chemical. Even though the merchants can make some profits, the
value of glyphosate decreases.
Glyphosate may not be excluded in herbicide
market so soon
Glyphosate
is generally utilized as an effective herbicide. However, its use gets
restricted in Europe. Glycine, yellow phosphorus, methanol, paraformaldehyde
are the major elements in the production of glyphosate. And the main
application of the chemical lies in agriculture.
Internationally,
a lot of attention has been paid to the debates about whether glyphosate can
cause cancer. In China, concerns have been also aroused on whether the
herbicide can do serious harm to the vegetation. However, sterilant herbicides
are difficult to be replaced at present. In other words, glyphosate is likely
to stay in the market for a while.
For more
information on China’s glyphosate market, please check our Glyphosate
China Monthly Report.