ST. PETERSBURG, June 3. /TASS/. The situation in the Middle East has become a shock for global agricultural producers due to rising fertilizer prices, which is causing long-term harm to farmers, EuroChem General Director Igor Akhmerov told TASS on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"The situation in the Middle East has created a shock. Our clients are agricultural producers, a fairly conservative group by definition, they don’t like shocks. And this has created a sharp confusion in people’s perceptions of fertilizer prices," he said.

Rising prices make agricultural producers reduce purchases and revise their plans, Akhmerov explained. "No, it hasn’t become (any better - TASS). In the long term, it’s damaging our customers, agricultural producers, and that’s not good," he added.

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum is taking place on June 3-6. This year’s theme is "Pragmatic Dialogue: the Path to a Stable Future." The forum program is dedicated to shaping a new model of global development amid the ongoing transformation of the world economy.

The program includes the SME Forum, the Creative Industries Forum, the Day of the Future International Youth Economic Forum, and the Ensuring Drug Security Forum. As part of the cultural program, the Petersburg Seasons festival and the traditional SPIEF Sports Games will take place. This year, Russia’s national economic development institution VEB.RF is the title partner of SPIEF.

The Roscongress Foundation is the organizer of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. TASS is its official general information partner.