Lean hog futures exhibited mixed results on Friday, with April contracts decreasing by 5 cents while subsequent months increased by 20 to 67 cents. April’s value was down 10 cents for the week. The USDA reported the national base hog price at $91.69, rising $1.95 from the previous day, while the CME Lean Hog Index on March 4 was $90.55, up 37 cents.
The latest Commitment of Traders data revealed that managed money raised their net long positions in lean hog futures and options by 7,053 contracts, bringing the total to 124,036. Additionally, USDA’s Friday afternoon pork carcass cutout value fell 95 cents to $98.27 per cwt. The estimated federally inspected hog slaughter this week was 2.497 million head, which is 19,000 head lower than the previous week but 95,953 head higher than the same week last year.
