Soaring fertilizer costs show no sign of easing amid the Iran war, according to farmers and market experts who are expressing pessimism about the future of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran and the United States are careening toward the end of a temporary ceasefire Wednesday, while the outcome of negotiations over the conflict is in doubt after President Donald Trump announced that the vital waterway was “COMPLETELY OPEN AND READY FOR BUSINESS” on Friday, before U.S. forces seized an Iranian-flagged ship and Iran again vowed to throttle traffic through the strait.
Many industry experts and farmers have accepted a grim reality: Global trade may not see free passage out of the Persian Gulf for weeks or months.
“It is incredibly hard to follow,” Justin Rackleff, principal analyst of the North American fertilizer market at CRU Group, said of the back-and-forth over the strait. “Last week, it felt like the administration was kind of tired of everything and wanted to move on and was ready to wrap it up. This week, it kind of seems that this may be a prolonged affair.”
