China halts urea exports to South Korea

A sign at a gas station in November 2021 during the urea shortage.

Chinese customs abruptly suspended a shipment of urea to South Korea, raising concerns that it could cause another "urea crisis" that occurred here two years ago.

According to a report by Kyunghyang Shinmun on December 3, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held an emergency joint meeting on the import of urea from China on December 1. It was held as there was a report that “China’s General Administration of Customs is holding up a shipment of urea that has completed customs inspection.”

"We received a report from a company that failed to ship urea on the first day of this month," an official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said. "The government has officially made inquiries to the Chinese government about the current situation about its suspension of urea exports and the reason behind its decision through various channels."

On December 4, the government is set to hold a joint meeting for the public and the private sector to figure out the current situation and come up with some measures.

Reportedly, South Korea is stockpiling enough urea inventories that could last about three months. However, major urea manufacturers, including Lotte Fine Chemical and Kumsung E&C, are keeping a close eye on China's move.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.