Biting the bullet in Brazil.(EDITORIAL)

The downturn in the Brazilian demand for fertilizers is biting hard. This is reflected in the latest financial results of Fosfertil, Brazil's largest fertilizer producer, which reported a 46% fall in net profits in the first six months this year. Fosfertil's first-half net profit of R$71.2 million ($33.4 million) compared with R$131.5 million for the same period last year. Net revenue was down by 5.4% on a year-on-year basis at R$721.2 million. The market downturn has forced another major participant, Bunge, to revise its forecasts for 2006. The group now expects full-year profits in the range of $425-445 million, compared with earlier forecasts of $495-515 million.

ANDA, the Brazilian Fertilizer Industry Association, has published updated statistics, which show that fertilizer deliveries in the first half of 2006 fell by 3% to 5.75 million tonnes compared with the same …