Malpass Urges China to Release 25% Fertilizer Output as Hormuz Crisis Chokes Supply
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 12
Malpass Urges China to Release 25% Fertilizer Output as Hormuz Crisis Chokes Supply
2 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 12
David Malpass said China should stop building food and fertilizer stockpiles and resume supply to help ease shortages worsened by the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz disruption.
China halted exports of several fertilizer types in March to protect domestic supply, extending restrictions built up since 2021; last year it produced about 25% of global fertilizer output and exported more than $13 billion.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for China's embassy in Washington, rejected the criticism, saying Beijing is committed to market stability and that the current supply-chain disruption cannot be blamed on China.
Malpass also said China can no longer credibly claim developing-country status and argued Beijing has an economic interest in helping reopen Hormuz because it depends heavily on open global shipping lanes.
Is China a food hoarder destabilizing the world, or a savvy nation preparing for the worst?
With fertilizer prices surging 50%, is a global food crisis now completely unavoidable for millions?
Beyond military threats, what new solutions could reopen the world's most critical shipping lane?