Definitive duty of 0.1488 dollars per kilo on Chinese ammonium sulfate

The Ministry of Economy imposed a definitive countervailing duty of USD 0.1488 per kilogram on imports of ammonium sulfate originating from China, regardless of the country of shipment. The measure was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF), issue number 221/2026, on Friday, August 14, 2026, on page 308, and will enter into force on the day following its publication. The resolution, signed on June 25, 2026, by the Secretary of Economy, Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubon, concludes case file AD 30-24 filed with the International Trade Practices Unit.

The final resolution closes the administrative antidumping investigation procedure initiated at the request of Agrogen, S.A. de C.V., an applicant considered representative of the domestic production industry for having produced 56% of the ammonium sulfate manufactured in Mexico during the investigation period. It was supported by Metalúrgica Met-Mex Peñoles, S.A. de C.V. and Fefermex, S.A. de C.V., while Avantor Performance Materials and Univex expressed indifference. The product, a fertilizer with 21% nitrogen and 24% sulfur, is applied to rice, corn, wheat, sorghum, potatoes, cotton, forage, fruits, and vegetables, among other crops.

The investigation and injury to the domestic industry

During the period analyzed (July 2023 to June 2024), the Ministry of Economy established that Chinese imports were made with a price discrimination margin of USD 0.1849 per kilogram and caused material injury to the domestic production industry:

• The investigated imports grew 973% and accounted for 74% of total imports of the product.
• The price undercutting relative to domestic prices went from 12% to 46% during the investigation period.
• Domestic production fell 50%, domestic market sales 58%, employment 38%, and the sales price 35%.

The definitive duty and its application

The duty of USD 0.1488 per kilogram is lower than the calculated dumping margin, in accordance with the lesser duty rule provided for in Article 9.1 of the Antidumping Agreement and Article 62 of the Foreign Trade Law. It applies to goods entering under tariff item 3102.21.01 of the TIGIE, or any other tariff item, and its collection was assigned to the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit throughout the national territory. Importers will be exempt if they prove that the country of origin is other than China, and the resolution was communicated to ANAM and SAT.

The concerns of the agricultural sector

The appearing importers PRONAMEX, FERGO, FERNO, Isquisa and NPK Soluciones warned that the duty would make the input more expensive and, with it, crops and the basic food basket, with estimated increases of between 2% and 4% based on data from INEGI and the Bank of Mexico, in addition to the current 35% tariff. The Ministry of Economy responded that the measure does not restrict fair trade and that alternative sources of supply exist: 23 external suppliers, two other domestic producers, and 22 countries from which imports can be made without tariffs or countervailing duties.

Background

Ammonium sulfate had a tariff exemption extended until December 31, 2026, through the decrees published on December 31, 2024, and 2025. Between 2022 and this resolution, the collection of duties was suspended in accordance with the agreement of May 24, 2022, adopted to mitigate inflationary effects in the countryside.

For agricultural producers, the new duty represents an additional cost on one of the most widely used inputs in agriculture, in an environment of international fertilizer prices pressured by the conflict in the Middle East; the authority maintains, instead, that the domestic industry and alternative supplies guarantee supply without risk of shortage.

Source: Official Gazette of the Federation, No. 221/2026, Friday, August 14, 2026, Ministry of Economy, p. 308 (official reference: Final Resolution of the administrative antidumping investigation procedure on imports of ammonium sulfate originating from the People’s Republic of China, case file AD 30-24).