Members of the BRICS group of countries met at a summit in Kazan this week, where discussions on trade development between member-states were at the top of the agenda. On the sidelines of the summit, a meeting took place between the leaders of Russia and India to discuss bilateral trade.
In the last fiscal year, which ends on March 31 in India, trade turnover between the two countries exceeded $65 billion. In addition to energy resources, fertilizers are playing an increasingly important role in trade between the two nations. Russia is the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers, while India is the world’s second-largest importer.
Since 2021, Russia’s fertilizer exports to India have increased more than fourfold, reaching 5.4 million tonnes last year. This represents about a quarter of the fertilizers India purchases abroad annually. According to expert forecasts, in the next five years, the Indian fertilizer market is expected to grow at twice the rate of the global average.
Andrey Guryev, the president of the Russian Fertilizer Producers Association, noted that member companies are ready to increase supply volumes, but certain limitations exist. In particular, India has a 5% import duty on fertilizers in place.
To remove this barrier, Guryev proposed creating a free trade zone between India and Russia within the Eurasian Economic Union (which includes Russia and several other post-Soviet states). Eliminating the duty would enable Indian farmers to benefit from lower prices and increase the use of highly efficient eco-friendly fertilizers from Russia, Guryev said.
In recent years, the Russian Fertilizer Producers Association has been actively cooperating with BRICS countries to promote the expansion of fertilizer supplies, including to Brazil and South Africa. Large developing nations are among the most dependent on fertilizer imports, which they rely on to boost crop yields and ensure food security.