Hog prices gain on signs of rise in pork demand after brutal 2009
Hog futures rose for a second day on signs of demand for pork and as the dollar fell, boosting the appeal of U.S. meat exports. Cattle were little changed.
Yesterday, wholesale pork rose 2.3 percent to 77.89 cents a pound, the biggest jump since Nov. 1, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show. The dollar fell as much as 1.3 percent against major currencies. Demand for meat is pushing up hog futures, said Mark Schultz, the chief analyst for Northstar Commodity Investment Co. in Minneapolis.
"The movement of pork has started to pick up pretty good," Schultz said. "Hams were up, probably seeing some holiday buying coming in."
Hog farmers are coming off a couple of very difficult years. A University of Minnesota study earlier this year estimated hog farmers on average lost $73,000 in 2009.
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Hog futures for February settlement rose 0.8 percent today. The price is up 17 percent this year.
The dollar's slide "should hopefully be a little bit better for the export business for us," Schultz said.
Some traders expect the rally in wholesale prices will be short-lived, said Dan Vaught, the owner of Vaught Futures Insights in Altus, Arkansas.
"The ham market is due sometime in the next week or so to begin a major seasonal decline because the retail industry will largely have completed its purchases for the Christmas holiday," Vaught said.