Lean Hogs Jun '18 (HEM18)

Lean hog futures posted mixed action across the board on Thursday, with front month gains of 20 to 42 cents and deferreds down a dime to 25 cents. The national average base hog price was reported at $76.27 on Thursday afternoon, up $1.39 from the day prior. The CME Lean Hog Index was $84.22 on September 17, unchanged from the day prior.

Pork export sales during the week of September 12 totaled 28,957 MT, back down 2.6% from the week prior. Japan was the largest buyer of 7,900 MT, with 3,000 MT sold to China. Export shipments were at 31,350 MT in that week, a 6-week high. Mexico was the largest destination of 12,600 MT, with 4,600 MT headed to Japan.

USDA’s FOB plant pork cutout value was up 40 cents in the Thursday PM report at $94.81 per cwt. The picnic and loin were the only primals reported lower, with the belly leading the way to the upside, $5.76 higher. USDA estimated FI hog slaughter at 479,000 head for Thursday, with the weekly total at 1.907 million head. That i... Read more