Inputs Monitor Illinois basis for the reporting week of January 3, 2013 stands at 1.05 on a state-state comparison of local fertilizer prices. Regional nutrient basis stands at 1.44. The table below is a side-by-side comparison of prices paid for fertilizer reported by USDA and asking prices reported to your Inputs Monitor. Inputs Monitor's Illinois numbers and Inputs Monitor Regional Index numbers are compared separately to USDA findings.

State-vs-state --

Urea comes in with the widest state-over-state margin at 3.89 where Inputs Monitor posts $560.00 to USDA's $538.17;DAP isn't far behind at 3.78 -- USDA at $614.83 to the Monitor's $639.00; Potash basis at 3.27 and anhydrous falls to -0.80 with USDA above Inputs Monitor pricing by $7.15.

Composite state-to-state basis posts a 1.05 margin in favor of the Inputs Monitor.

USDA Illinois-vs-Inputs Monitor Regional Index --

DAP bears the widest basis here with a 4.83 point separation -- USDA at $538.17 to the Regional Monitor's $565.50; Urea a close second at 4.83; Potash rounds out the top three -- USDA K at $579.38 to Monitor's $590.75, a 1.92 point spread.

UAN28 leads to the lowside with a margin of -1.41; Farm Diesel USDA at $5.53, 0.84 above Inputs Monitor's $3.50; Anhydrous at -0.59 with USDA at $887.15 to Inputs Monitor Regional Index's $881.91.

(Prices for UAN32 and LP were omitted by USDA from their survey, and, therefore, do not appear in this analysis.)

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