Tulip fortunately stood on at 143p and all the others with the exception of Cranswick, who decided to take a penny out, left their prices unchanged and so the league placings now read as follows:

1st 145p Woodhead
2nd 143p Tulip

and finally bringing up the rear

141p Cranswick
141p Vion
141p Gill

A lethal combination of indifferent retail demand and a small surplus of pigs is combining to put a lid on the price recovery which producers sorely need.

Spot bacon was in the main traded in the 140p–144p range although most buyers had all they needed by mid-morning and there are unlikely to be many last minute shoppers operating out there this week.

Reports of indifferent demand for lighter cutter weight pigs has also done nothing to help on the fresh meat front, but at least the pig market appears to be in better health than the stock market.

Despite all the turmoil in the euro zone financial exchanges, the euro closed the week in a better position than it was seven days ago worth 87.4p.

This helps to keep up the price of imported pigmeat and also encourage cull sow buyers to hold their quotes at positive stand-on levels between 107p–111p (according to spec.) and now that the Leicestershire Six Hills Abattoir has started to search for cull sows too, sellers can look forward to a relatively buoyant British market, although this will ultimately be ruled by European mainland pigmeat prices, but at least there will be four outlets to sell to instead of just two.

Weaner sellers are still caught between a rock and a hard place with the latest Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board 30kg ex-farm weaner quote still on the drift at 340.42/head, but the prospect of slightly lower feed prices might help to put some stability back into this sector.

The latest ex-farm feed wheat quote has slipped a shade further and now stands at 3152.90/tonne, but as one weaner buyer gloomily commented, "Today's weaner is a baconer on Christmas Eve", which as we all know can be a slightly tricky time to sell finished pigs.

The downward move in cereal prices followed reports of better prospects for United States yields as well as falling oil prices reducing competition from the biofuel sector.

Despite the Eastern Counties drought earlier this summer, wheat production in England was only 1.5 percent below the five-year average reflecting much better yields outside of East Anglia where rainfall shortages decimated cereal crops and helped to push up the price of straw adding further pressure to producers' financial margins.