The national average negotiated carcass price for direct delivered hogs on the morning report on 29 July was $100.01/cwt, up $6.78 from the previous Friday. The Friday morning price report (on 29 July) for the western corn belt was $101.55/cwt. Iowa-Minnesota averaged $100.91/cwt. The eastern corn belt averaged $98.80/cwt. The top live hog price at Peoria was $66/cwt. Zumbrota's top was $69/cwt. The top for interior Missouri live hogs was $69.75/cwt, up $2.25 from the previous Friday.

The pork cut-out value rose for the fourth consecutive week. USDA's Thursday afternoon calculated pork cut-out value was $104.18/cwt, up $4.45 from the previous Thursday and a new record high. Loins, hams, butts, and bellies were all higher this week. This morning's national average hog carcass price equalled 96 per cent of the pork cut-out value.

On 21 July, Chinese officials reported an outbreak of foot and mouth disease in Guizhou province. Chinese hog producers have been battling PRRS and pork prices there are already high. This increases the likelihood that China will be importing more pork in coming months.

The annual July survey of livestock forecasters by the Extension Section of the AAEA indicates on average they expect pork production to be up 0.8 per cent in the second half of 2011 and up 0.5 per cent in 2012. Survey respondents predict that this slow rate of growth will lead to more hog price records. The consensus forecast is for barrow and gilt prices, on a live weight basis, to average $69.30/cwt in the current quarter and $62.98/cwt in the fourth quarter of 2011. For the first through fourth quarter of 2012, the averages of the live weight price forecasts for market hogs are: $64.64/cwt, $69.23/cwt, $68.97/cwt, and $62.99/cwt, respectively. They expect 2012 market hog prices to average $1/cwt higher than this year.

Hog slaughter totalled 1.992 million head last week, down 0.9 per cent from last week but up 2.2 per cent compared to the same week last year. Barrow and gilt carcass weights for the week ending 16 July averaged 199 pounds, down one pound from a week earlier and the same as a year ago. Iowa-Minnesota live weights for barrows and gilts last week averaged 263.7 pounds, down 2.9 pounds from the week before, down 4.7 pounds compared to the same week last year, and the lightest of any week since 4 July 2009. This is the ninth consecutive week Iowa-Minnesota weights have been below the year-earlier level. Given the extremely hot weather, slaughter weights are likely to continue to be very light.

The August lean hog futures contract settled on 29 July at $102.77/cwt, up $1.95 from the previous Friday. The October hog contract settled at $92.40/cwt, down 17 cents for the week. December hogs settled at $88.52 and February closed at $90.50/cwt.

The September corn futures contract lost 25 cents this week to settle at $6.655/bu. December corn futures close at $6.6875, down 17 cents from the previous Friday.