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Lean hog futures experienced a significant gain on Friday, with contracts rising by 87 cents to $1.05, and October futures up $1 compared to last week. Preliminary open interest increased by 5,363 contracts, indicating net new buying. The USDA reported national base hog prices at $101.25, down $3.18 from the previous day. The CME Lean Hog Index was reported at $105.97 on September 3, up by a nickel.
For the week ending August 28, U.S. pork export sales dropped to 23,711 metric tons (MT), with Mexico purchasing the highest volume at 10,100 MT and Japan at 2,300 MT. Shipments rose to 26,570 MT, predominantly to Mexico (12,900 MT) and Japan (3,700 MT). USDA’s federally inspected hog slaughter for the previous week was 2.319 million head, decreasing by 73,000 head from last week and 10,979 head from the same holiday week last year.
Managed money speculators increased their net long positions in lean hog futures and options by 9,849 contracts to a total of 123,891 contracts as of Tuesday. The USDA’s pork cutout value also rose by $2.55 to $115.87 per cwt.
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