FERTILIZER STOCKS SURGE TO HIGHS

Corn supplies could sink to a 35-year low over the course of the next 12 months - dismal news for food companies and alternative energy makers, but terrific for the fortunes of fertilizer makers. Several have reached record levels, with Agrium (AGU) ahead 4%, Potash (POT) ahead 1%, and CF Industries higher by 1%, as well. The department of agriculture said that global corn supplies could sink to the lowest levels since the early ’70s, as midwestern floodings wipes out a chunk of the crops planted earlier this year. Merrill Lynch said that those conditions make the prospects for fertilizer makers very attractive. The firm boosted price targets and estimates for the sector