Things to Consider…. The USDA's Quarterly Hogs & Pigs report was released Thursday, September 26th. Hog inventories in the near-term were reported higher than market analyst's pre-report estimates, however lighter weight pigs and farrowings were notably lower. All Hogs & Pigs came out higher than pre-report estimates, increasing 1.994 million head higher or +2.7% from June's tally and bringing current inventories 367 thousand head or up +0.5% from a year earlier. Market hog categories were reported mixed with nearby weights higher than a year ago, rising +2.2% for 180 pounds and over, and 120-170 pounds at 3.5% above year ago levels. Lighter weight categories came in 98.7% and 98.5% of 2023 levels for the same period a year earlier. Kept for breeding aligned with market expectations, rising 0.6% from the previous quarter and -2.2% under a year earlier. The Jun-Aug pig crop was expected lower, and came out -0.8% over year ago levels, and pigs per litter reached the highest recorded to date at 11.72 for the June-August period. All inventory and pig crop estimates for September 2023 through June 2024 were reviewed using final pig crop, official slaughter, death loss, and updated import and export data. The revision made to the June 2024 all hogs and pigs inventory was 1.0 percent. A revision of 0.3 percent was made to the March 2024-May 2024 pig crop. A net revision of 0.2 percent was made to the March 2024 all hogs and pigs inventory. The net revision made to the December 2023-February 2024 pig crop was 1.8 percent.
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