Weekly pig outlook: Lean hog futures bulls show resilience
Lean hog futures rebounded as bulls stepped in to defend chart support, even as cash hog prices and the CME index continued to weaken
16 January 2026
2 minute read
By: Lean hog futures bulls stepped up when they had to do so…
February lean hog futures on Wednesday rose $1.075 to $85.70. Lean hog futures saw the bulls step in to do some perceived bargain hunting following this week’s dip—and also keep alive a price uptrend on the daily bar chart. Bulls are still concerned about a weakening cash hog market and CME lean hog index recently. The latest CME lean hog index is down 10 cents to $80.50. Today’s projected cash index price is down another 11 cents at $80.39. Wednesday’s national direct 5-day rolling average cash hog price quote was $68.56.
US consumer price index food index increased 3.1% over the last year
The US CPI index for food rose 0.7% in December as did the index for food at home. Five of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased in December. The index for other food at home rose 1.6% over the month. The cereals and bakery products index increased 0.6% in December. The index for fruits and vegetables increased 0.5% and the index for nonalcoholic beverages increased 0.4%. The dairy and related products index rose 0.9% in December. In contrast, the index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs decreased 0.2% in December, as the index for eggs fell 8.2%.
The food away from home index also rose 0.7% in December. The index for full service meals rose 0.8% over the month and the index for limited service meals increased 0.6%.
The index for food at home rose 2.4% over the 12 months ending in December. The meats, poultry, fish, and eggs index rose 3.9% over the last 12 months. The index for other food at home increased 2.7% over the same period and the index for nonalcoholic beverages rose 5.1%.
The cereals and bakery products index increased 1.5% over the 12 months ending in December. The index for fruits and vegetables rose 0.5% over the year. In contrast, the dairy and related products index decreased 0.9% over the same period.
The food away from home index rose 4.1% over the last year. The index for full service meals rose 4.9% and the index for limited service meals rose 3.3% over the same period.
The next week’s likely high-low price trading ranges:
February lean hog futures--$83.00 to $87.50 and with a sideways-higher bias
March soybean meal futures--$282.50 to $306.90, and with a sideways-lower bias
March corn futures--$4.17 1/4 to $4.30 and a sideways-lower bias
Latest analytical daily charts lean hog, soybean meal and corn futures
