January 21, 2008
US hog, pork prices languish below year ago on huge supply
US cash hog and wholesale pork prices continue to languish at double-digit percentage declines from a year ago on larger-than-expected supplies.
The USDA's national weighted average price for hogs Thursday afternoon was US$46.99 per hundredweight, down US$11.96, or 20.3 percent from the year-ago figure of US$58.95.
The USDA's pork carcass composite value Thursday was quoted at US$55.29, which was down US$8.86, or 13.8 percent, from the same day a year ago.
The pork cutout value on Tuesday dipped to US$55.18, its lowest since December 26, 2003.
Providing the pressure on US hog and pork prices are huge hog supplies. The processing plants have been able to easily acquire enough animals to maintain weekly slaughter rates similar to the record levels achieved in the fourth quarter of 2007.
Weekly slaughters in January so far have averaged 14.2 percent above the same period a year ago.
Market analysts said hog and wholesale pork prices could have declined even further were it not for growth in export sales, reasonably strong demand for pork domestically and expanded slaughtering capacity compared with a year ago.
