Reuters – Weak cash hog prices and lower pork values dragged the market to a fresh three-month low Jan. 11, traders said.
Pork packer margins have eroded and the closely followed cash wholesale pork cutout value fell to the lowest level in nearly two years on the same day.
“The anchor on the hogs is the premium in the futures market to the (CME lean hog) index and the fact that we haven’t been able to put in a cash low yet,” said Don Roose, president of U.S. Commodities.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture quoted the pork cutout at US$80.68 per hundredweight on Jan 11, lowest since Feb. 3, 2021.
The average pork packer margin based on that was estimated at just $5.80 per head, down from $11.10 a week earlier, according to marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.com.
