CME update: hog futures slid as corn prices charge higher
US lean hog futures closed lower on 22 April amid pressure from fund-driven liquidation and soaring corn prices that push up feed costs.
23 April 2021
3 minute read
By: Reuters reports that US lean hog futures ended down 0.975 cent at 103.550 cents per pound, pressured as Chicago Board of Trade corn futures climbed their daily limit and neared an eight-year high above $6 a bushel.
Rising prices for corn, a key ingredient in hog feed, could spur operators to sell hogs more aggressively to meat packing houses to trim feed costs.
After the close, the USDA's monthly Cold Storage report showed US frozen pork belly stocks at 35.260 million pounds as of 31 March, down 55% from a year ago.
The USDA's weekly export sales report showed net sales reductions for pork totaling 22,100 tonnes in the week ended 15 April, including significant cancellations for Mexico that the USDA attributed to a reporting error dating from 2020. But pork shipments for the week totaled 43,900 tonnes, a marketing-year high.
