September 16, 2005
USDA: Hong Kong livestock and products annual 2005
Hong Kong has a domestic market of US$149 million of beef products and US$14.5 million of live cattle. If re-exports (US$13 million) and offal trade are included, the entire market is about US$304 million.
The U.S. used to be the largest supplier of beef products, occupying a market share of 44 percent in 2003. Hong Kong's ban on U.S. beef since December 2003 was estimated to have resulted in US$136 million loss in U.S. beef exports.
Hong Kong's beef imports for 2006 are forecast to increase by 5 percent based on the assumption that U.S. beef will return to Hong Kong.
Canadian beef imports to Hong Kong were resumed in November 2004. Its market share jumped from 2 percent in 2002 before it was banned in Hong Kong to 21 percent in the first half of 2005. Canada is now the second largest supplier of beef in terms of value.
Hong Kong has a domestic market of US$353 million for pork products in addition to US$288 million market for live pigs. U.S. exported US$6.4 million and US$3.9 million of pork products and offals to Hong Kong respectively in the first half year of 2005.
China is the largest pork supplier for the Hong Kong market. The human Streptococcus suis infection cases in China's Sichuan province reported in Hong Kong in late July had a transient negative effect on Hong Kong's pork consumption and trade.
Hong Kong has a rather stable pork market. However, the market still fluctuates with prices. The average pork prices in the January ¨C June 2005 rose by 21 percent. The price effects together with the Streptococcus suis incident are expected to cause pork imports in 2005 to decline to 250,000 MT.
In the coming years, it is expected that the consumption share of fresh meats will continue to decline while that of chilled/frozen meats will rise. On the production side, the Hong Kong government is gauging the response from farm operators about the introduction of a voluntary license surrender scheme.
For the full USDA report, click here.
