July 24, 2024

 

Share prices of China's chicken producers spiked as Brazil suspends exports due to Newcastle disease

 

 

Many Chinese chicken breeders logged a big jump in their share prices on July 19 after Brazil's Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply (MAPA) said that it is pausing exports of its chickens to many countries, including China, due to an outbreak of Newcastle disease.

 

Henan Huaying Agricultural Development's share price soared by the exchange-imposed limit of 10% to close at ¥1.56 (US$0.21). Ningxia Xiaoming Agriculture & Animal Husbandry's stock price hit 10% during the day and closed up 6.8% at ¥11.58 (US$1.59).

 

Shares in Fujian Tianma Science and Technology Group finished up 5.2% at ¥12.15 (US$1.67) while that of Hunan Xiangjia Animal Husbandry climbed 4.4% to end at ¥17.48 (US$2.41) and that of Shandong Minhe Animal Husbandry jumped 4.2% to ¥8.81 (US$1.21).

 

Newcastle disease was recently found in a poultry farm in the south of the country, killing 7,000 chickens, MAPA said on the same day.

 

To prevent the disease from spreading and protect international markets, Brazil decided to temporarily halt its exports of chickens, eggs, and other poultry products to other countries, MAPA said.

 

The export ban will not have a big impact on Xiaoming, which mainly breeds chickens for eggs and does not sell a lot of chicken meat, an executive in the Yinchuan-based firm's investor relations department said. But it will significantly affect companies that breed white-winged broilers.

 

While chickens imported from Brazil are white-winged broilers, Xiangjia breeds yellow-winged ones; as such, the export suspension will not have a severe effect on the Changde-based firm as its marketing channels are quite fixed, a company insider said.

 

Last year, China imported 679,300 tonnes of Brazilian chicken. But in the first seven months, China's imports from Brazil tumbled 29% year-on-year to 276,100 tonnes.

 

China also imports chicken meat from other countries including the United States, Australia, and Thailand.

- Yicai