Reading Time: 2 minutes Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) hauled more carloads of Canadian grain in its first quarter of 2016 compared to the same period last year — but for less revenue per car. Calgary-based CP on Wednesday reported overall net income of $540 million on revenues of $1.591 billion for its quarter ending March 31, up from $320 […] Read more
CP pulls more grain for less in first quarter
India backstops first phase of Sask. potash mine
Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg | Reuters — India’s Gujarat State Fertilizers and Chemicals has agreed to guarantee payments on US$700 million in debt to finance the first phase of Karnalyte Resources’ Saskatchewan potash mine project, Karnalyte said Monday, adding supply even as other miners cut production. Under the deal, a subsidiary of State Bank of India and other […] Read more
Pest Patrol: Do potassium levels affect my weed management?
#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA
Reading Time: 2 minutes Soils that test “low” in potassium negatively affect weed control in soybeans. When soils test low for potassium, soybean plants will express deficiency symptoms that reduce canopy closure and allow more weeds to germinate and compete with the soybean crop for other resources. In the spring of 2014, Dr. François Tardif and I began a […] Read more
PotashCorp to curb two Sask. mines’ production
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — PotashCorp said Thursday that it will curtail production at two Saskatchewan potash mines for four weeks, as excessive supplies pressure prices. The company said it would curtail output at its Allan and Lanigan mines, about 50 and 110 km southeast of Saskatoon respectively, for four weeks starting March 20. The move is expected […] Read more
No fertilizer panic – for now
Supplies for 2016 seem healthy, but there’s no time like today to lock in your needs
Reading Time: 3 minutes Six years ago, the International Plant Nutrient Institute calculated a timeline for the world’s known reserves of key nutrients. It suggested we’ve got lots of breathing room, including 55 years for N-based fertilizers, 235 years for potash, 696 for phosphate, and a virtually inexhaustible supply of sulphur. Of course, as we use up some of […] Read more
Mosaic looks for bargain buys as fertilizer sector slumps
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — U.S. fertilizer company Mosaic Co., grappling with falling prices and profits, is looking for acquisitions that could be bargain-priced in a weak commodity sector. The world’s largest producer of finished phosphate products on Thursday forecast lower selling prices for potash and phosphate in the current quarter. The Plymouth, Minn.-based company also reported fourth-quarter […] Read more
Fertilizer expected to be pricier by springtime
Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada –– Relatively cheap natural gas has helped push down fertilizer prices for Canadian farmers over the past winter, but that should change by springtime. One Manitoba farm leader noted urea fertilizer that went for $545 per tonne last August could now be acquired for $445 per tonne. “Phosphate fertilizer was going for $721 […] Read more
Mosaic cuts phosphate production
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters –– U.S.-based fertilizer producer Mosaic Co. said Wednesday it would cut output of phosphates by up to 400,000 tonnes with rotating plant shutdowns in the first quarter, due to weak demand. Fertilizer producers have seen profits hit by falling prices, triggered in part by weak currencies in importing countries such as Brazil. “The long-term […] Read more
PotashCorp forecasts bleak year ahead
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — PotashCorp has forecast its bleakest year in a decade and slashed its dividend, due to tanking fertilizer prices. Shares of PotashCorp, which also reported lower-than-expected quarterly profit on Thursday, bounced off earlier losses, climbing 1.9 per cent in New York by afternoon. On Monday they tumbled to a nine-year low. Potash prices have […] Read more
CP books more Prairie grain revenue at year-end
Reading Time: 2 minutes Higher grain revenue on Canada’s Prairies helped lead to record full-year revenues and offset a lower fourth-quarter gross for Canadian Pacific Railway (CP), as the company warned of substantial job cuts ahead. The railway on Thursday reported overall net income of $1.352 billion on record revenue of $6.712 billion for 2015, down from $1.476 billion […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
