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Lean hog futures increased by 30 to 65 cents on Thursday, with the December 25 hogs closing at $79.475, while the USDA’s national base hog price fell to $71.87, down $2.74 from the prior day. The CME Lean Hog Index also decreased by 40 cents to $86.27.
USDA reported a weekly export sale of 32,705 MT during the week of October 2, a decrease from the previous week, with shipments totaling 29,209 MT. The pork carcass cutout value was down by $2.93 to $90.23 per cwt, with a significant drop of $16.77 in belly prices.
Thursday’s estimated federally inspected hog slaughter reached 494,000 head, bringing the week-to-date total to 1.976 million head, which is 4,000 head higher than last week and an increase of 30,598 head compared to the same week last year.
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