Lean hog futures experienced a decline on Friday, with contracts falling by 30 to 45 cents, and February’s contracts down $1.10 for the week. The USDA reported a national base hog price of $83.57, a decrease of 81 cents from the previous day. The CME Lean Hog Index rose by 50 cents to $85.72 as of January 28.
According to CFTC data, managed money increased their net long position in lean hog futures and options by 16,388 contracts, totaling 113,806 contracts as of Tuesday. Additionally, USDA reported the pork carcass cutout value increased by 79 cents to $94.22 per cwt, while federally inspected hog slaughter this week reached 2.522 million head, 54,000 head higher than last week but 37,861 head lower than the same week last year.
