Pot shot

30 July 2013 By Kevin Allison

The world’s biggest potash producer, Russia’s Uralkali, has abandoned a cartel that set prices of the key fertiliser, sending the sector’s shares plunging. If the pact is truly dead, billions of people will enjoy cheaper food. But there’s a risk the split won’t last.

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Russia’s Uralkali has dismantled the world’s largest potash cartel in a move that it expects to slash prices by 25 percent, heralding a reshaped industry and pummelling shares of companies that produce the key fertiliser ingredient.
Shares of Uralkali, part-owned by tycoon Suleiman Kerimov, plunged more than 20 percent, prompting the Moscow bourse to suspend trading in the stock.
Shares of Germany’s K+S, a rival fertiliser firm, sank by 24.5 percent to a six-year low. Potash Corp shares were down about 24 percent at around $29, while Mosaic and Agrium fell 26 percent and 7 percent respectively. Agrium’s fall was less steep as it is more focused on nitrogen production than potash.

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