# Surprise, surprise: Crop input prices surge

> Gulf urea swaps jumped $32 a ton to $300 in one week as buyers scrambled for barges amid limited imports. Ammonia contracts for January settled at $245 a ton, and Corn Belt dealers were quoting $480 to $500 for anhydrous ammonia ahead of spring. Fuel and fertilizer costs were rising alongside higher grain prices.

- Date: 2021-01-19 · published 2021-01-19T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: market · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/9193-surprise-surprise-crop-input-prices-surge
- Commodities: [Corn](https://feedsoft.ai/c/CORN.md), [Urea](https://feedsoft.ai/c/UREA.md)

## Why it matters

Rising nitrogen costs raise the cost of producing feed grains and add to upward pressure on fertilizer-linked input prices heading into spring application. Strong urea forward curves suggest the price strength could persist through planting.

## Read by commodity

- CORN: bullish ▲
- UREA: bullish ▲

## Linked price moves

| Commodity | Date | Window | Change % | z-score | Why linked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| UREA | 2021-01-29 | 5 | +19.9% | 3.7 | Gulf urea swaps jumped $32/t to $300 in one week as buyers scrambled for barges amid limited imports, a supply-demand squeeze that drove the rally. |
| UREA | 2021-02-01 | 5 | +20.9% | 4.1 | Gulf urea swaps jumping $32 as buyers scrambled for barges on limited imports shows the US demand and supply squeeze. |

## Sources

- pnw.coop: https://pnw.coop/story-surprise-surprise-crop-input-prices-surge-22-210191
- farmprogress.com: https://www.farmprogress.com/crops/surprise-surprise-crop-input-prices-surge

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.