Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach

The global fertilizer industry is a market with high and increasing levels of concentration and trade. Low‐income regions such as sub‐Saharan Africa are highly dependent on imported fertilizer, and the landed price of imports at the port of entry usually represents a large fraction of the fertilizer...

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Main Authors: Hernandez, Manuel A., Torero, Máximo
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Wiley 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/152879
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author Hernandez, Manuel A.
Torero, Máximo
author_browse Hernandez, Manuel A.
Torero, Máximo
author_facet Hernandez, Manuel A.
Torero, Máximo
author_sort Hernandez, Manuel A.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description The global fertilizer industry is a market with high and increasing levels of concentration and trade. Low‐income regions such as sub‐Saharan Africa are highly dependent on imported fertilizer, and the landed price of imports at the port of entry usually represents a large fraction of the fertilizer supply costs in these regions. This article formally examines the relationship between market concentration and prices from a global perspective. We follow a dynamic panel approach using annual data on urea for a panel of countries and observe that prices are generally higher in more concentrated markets using different measures of concentration and model specifications. Based on additional simulations, we find that a 10% increase in competition could increase fertilizer use by 13–19% and rural incomes by 1–2% in regions like sub‐Saharan Africa. Overall, the results highlight the need to further examine the pricing behavior and potential market power exertion of major global producers, which can help to better understand the industry supply chain in developing countries and provide additional insights into the design of policies, including input subsidy programs, intended to promote long‐term fertilizer adoption.
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spelling CGSpace1528792024-11-15T08:53:04Z Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach Hernandez, Manuel A. Torero, Máximo behaviour fertilizer industry dynamic models The global fertilizer industry is a market with high and increasing levels of concentration and trade. Low‐income regions such as sub‐Saharan Africa are highly dependent on imported fertilizer, and the landed price of imports at the port of entry usually represents a large fraction of the fertilizer supply costs in these regions. This article formally examines the relationship between market concentration and prices from a global perspective. We follow a dynamic panel approach using annual data on urea for a panel of countries and observe that prices are generally higher in more concentrated markets using different measures of concentration and model specifications. Based on additional simulations, we find that a 10% increase in competition could increase fertilizer use by 13–19% and rural incomes by 1–2% in regions like sub‐Saharan Africa. Overall, the results highlight the need to further examine the pricing behavior and potential market power exertion of major global producers, which can help to better understand the industry supply chain in developing countries and provide additional insights into the design of policies, including input subsidy programs, intended to promote long‐term fertilizer adoption. 2013-11 2024-10-01T13:55:18Z 2024-10-01T13:55:18Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/152879 en Limited Access Wiley Hernandez, Manuel A.; and Torero, Maximo. 2013. Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach. Agricultural Economics 44(6): 723-734. Special Issue on Input Subsidy Programs (ISPs) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/agec.12084/abstract
spellingShingle behaviour
fertilizer industry
dynamic models
Hernandez, Manuel A.
Torero, Máximo
Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach
title Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach
title_full Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach
title_fullStr Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach
title_full_unstemmed Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach
title_short Market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry: A global approach
title_sort market concentration and pricing behavior in the fertilizer industry a global approach
topic behaviour
fertilizer industry
dynamic models
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/152879
work_keys_str_mv AT hernandezmanuela marketconcentrationandpricingbehaviorinthefertilizerindustryaglobalapproach
AT toreromaximo marketconcentrationandpricingbehaviorinthefertilizerindustryaglobalapproach