|
Hog and cattle futures surged by the exchange limit in Chicago on signs that U.S. animal supplies will shrink this year. Cash-market hog prices jumped the most in three months on Dec. 31, halting a 10-session slide, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show. There were 5.5 percent fewer young hogs in the U.S. herd weighing less than 60 pounds on Dec. 1 than a year earlier, the USDA said Dec. 30. Cattle feedlots have cut purchases of young animals because of waning beef demand. "We have the market expecting cash hogs to bottom at any time," said Rich Nelson, a broker at Allendale Inc. in McHenry, Illinois. "There is a little optimism. This was a very rough year for livestock, certainly for producers, but maybe that will change for 2009." Hog futures for February settlement jumped 2.975 cents, or 4.9 percent, to 63.85 cents a pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Earlier, the price rose 3 cents, the most allowed by the CME. The price advanced 8.3 percent this week, snapping a four-week slump. The most-active contract increased 5.2 percent in 2008. The national average cash-market hog price rose 1.16 cents, or 2.4 percent, to 49.97 cents a pound on Dec. 31, the biggest jump since Sept. 23, USDA data show. About 21.3 million hogs in the U.S. herd weighed less than 60 pounds (27 kilograms) at the beginning of December, less than 22.5 million at the same time a year earlier, the USDA said this week. Those lightweight hogs will be ready for slaughter beginning in March. The number of hog births, or farrowings, from December through February will probably be 3.3 percent lower than in the same period last year because producers cut breeding herds in the past three quarters, according to the USDA's forecast. About 2.971 million pig litters are expected to be born in the three months through February, down from 3.071 million a year earlier. Cattle futures for February delivery rose 1.05 cents, or 1.2 percent, to 87.1 cents a pound after gaining the maximum 3 cents. The most-active contract climbed 1.2 percent this week. The price fell 11 percent in 2008. Feeder-cattle futures for March delivery increased 1.85 cents, or 2 percent, to 95.525 cents a pound. Meatpackers may process 507,000 head of cattle this week through tomorrow, 4.7 percent less than in the same week a year earlier, according to USDA estimates. U.S. feedlots have cut young cattle purchases from year-earlier levels every month since July, the USDA said on Dec. 19. Purchases fell as high corn prices last year and waning beef demand curbed profits. "We should be getting tighter on our cattle numbers," said Joe Kropf, an analyst at Joe Kropf & Sid Love Consulting Services Inc. in Overland Park, Kansas. "The supply side of cattle and beef for the next six to eight weeks should be a little more bullish for prices." Wholesale beef rose 0.11 cent to $1.433 a pound at midday, according to the USDA. The price fell 2.7 percent in 2008. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as E Cigarette Accessories , Electronic Health Cigarette Manufacturer, and more. For more , please visit Pcc e Cigarette today!
Related Articles -
E Cigarette Accessories, Electronic Health Cigarette Manufacturer,
| 
