By Kirk Maltais
Inventories of hogs and pigs in the U.S. are higher than this time last year, the Agriculture Department said Thursday.
In its quarterly Hogs and Pigs Report, the USDA said the total inventory of hogs in the U.S. was 72.9 million head, up only 0.2% from this time last year.
The USDA additionally reported the U.S. breeding inventory at 6.13 million head, which is up 0.5% from last year, and that the market hog inventory totaled 66.7 million head, up 0.2% from last year.
Estimates from private analysts prior to the report’s release showed expectations of a slight uptick in all categories, less than 1% for each.
In trading Thursday, most-active lean hog futures on the CME closed trading up 0.8% to 91.9 cents a pound. Live cattle futures finished up 0.9% to $1.61 a pound.
Write to Kirk Maltais at [email protected]
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