Pig prices on the rise in China

Pig prices are on the rise in CHINA as demand for pork is expected to pick up ahead of the Lunar New Year. Pork futures for January delivery soared 7% to 17,470 yuan ($2,737), the highest level in two months, according to BLOOMBERG data .

However, hog prices are 40% below the February level. Demand for pork is expected to pick up in the coming months as stores and restaurants restock and products like sausages and smoked pork gear up for winter, said Jim Huang, HEAD of China-America Commodity Data Analytics, an independent consulting firm. 

China's 38% rise in pork production in the first nine months of the year has driven prices down, Chinese officials and traders said, and the chances of a new surge are limited. Official figures show the pig population is 18% higher than in September 2020, reaching 437.6 million.

China's pig surplus situation will persist for some time, said Kong Liang, head of the animal husbandry and veterinary department at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, quoted by NASDAQ.

Kong added that the number of sows from August to September was 10% above normal levels and that the number of commercial pigs in the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022 will increase significantly compared to the same period last year. In his opinion, pig prices could fall again in the first quarter of 2022 if producers do not get rid of inefficient sows and send pigs to slaughter.