U.S. Hikes Tariffs on Moroccan Fertilizers, OCP Group to Appeal Decision

After a considerable drop in customs duties on Moroccan fertilizers last November, which fell from 19.97% to 2.12%, the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) has just revised these rates upwards, raising them from 2.12% to 14.21%, reveals Les Inspirations Éco.

This decision penalizes the OCP group, which has announced that it will appeal to the U.S. Court of International Trade. "We are disappointed with these preliminary results, which we understand to be largely influenced by flaws in the methodology applied by the DOC to assess the OCP Group’s duties on its phosphate ore exploitation," said an OCP group official to the daily.

However, the impact of this recent decision on Moroccan exports will depend on the volume of fertilizers imported by the United States, which amounts to an average of $700 million per year, explains the daily, which recalls that a similar situation had occurred in 2021 and that the international trade court had ultimately ruled in favor of the OCP group in November 2023.

The DOC’s decision follows a request from the American fertilizer company Mosaic, the country’s largest phosphate producer, which had requested intervention from the U.S. Department of Commerce. It affects American farmers as well. "This new development bodes nothing good for the price of inputs used by farmers, as the price of phosphate will rise considerably," denounces Harold Wolle, president of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA).