In theory, supply gaps could be filled either by additional production in the developing world (but not necessarily in each individual country), or by imports from the developed countries. However, it now seems unlikely that the developed countries will be in a position to fill the entire fertilizer gap in developing countries. The recent spurt in prices has generated large new investment in fertilizer capacity in developed countries; but there is still a large uncovered gap between expected requirements and likely supply, particularly in developing countries. The actual magnitude of this gap would of course depend on the rate at which the expansion of fertilizer capacity actually takes place in the next 4-5 years. The situation is changing very rapidly, and it is very hazardous to forecast the actual gaps. There are, however, a variety of factors which will determine the future supply/demand balance, including the persistence of high fertilizer prices, the ability of traditional producing countries to assure themselves of feedstock supplies on a long-term contract basis, and the initiatives taken to build new capacity in both developing and developed countries.