2017 Pig Price Trends: Pig Prices Keep Climbing, Rally Shows No Sign of Slowing
Today's national average live pig price is 17.50 yuan/kg, up 0.41 yuan/kg from last Friday, and the national average ex-farm price of lean-type pigs is 17.88 yuan/kg, up 0.42 yuan/kg from last Friday.
During the New Year's Day holiday, the increase in the national average ex-farm price of lean-type pigs widened, and ex-farm live pig prices rose generally across all provinces.
Ex-farm live pig prices rose across the board in Northeast China, with Heilongjiang and Jilin up 0.2 yuan/kg and Liaoning up 0.4 yuan/kg; pig prices rose in North China, with Hebei surging 0.7 yuan/kg and Tianjin and Shanxi up 0.3 yuan/kg; in East China, pig prices in many provinces rose above 9 yuan/jin, with Shandong up 0.6 yuan/kg, Jiangsu and Shanghai up about 0.3-0.4 yuan/kg, and Fujian up 0.2 yuan/kg; pig prices rose in Central China, with Henan's increase widening to 0.7 yuan/kg and Jiangxi and Hunan up about 0.2-0.3 yuan/kg; pig prices rose in South China, with Guangdong up 0.4 yuan/kg; pig prices were stable in Northwest China; pig prices rose in Southwest China, with Sichuan up 0.6 yuan/kg and Yunnan stable. During the New Year's Day holiday, domestic pig prices kept climbing, with the rally widening and showing a nationwide, broad-based upward trend. Ex-farm live pig prices in many provinces in East and Central China have already risen above 18 yuan/kg, while Hebei and Henan saw pig prices surge by 0.7 yuan/kg.
This round of pig price gains widened mainly due to the boost from demand in the terminal fresh-meat market, combined with the peak season for making cured meat and sausages in the south, which together created an overall market pattern of relatively tight supply and demand and helped push pig prices up. The New Year's Day holiday has now ended, and the boost to demand from the holiday effect will also weaken. Moreover, the peak season for slaughtering pigs for the New Year in the north generally does not enter its high period until after the 15th day of the 12th lunar month, so the momentum to sustain further pig price increases in the short term is somewhat insufficient. However, the overall market pattern of slightly tight supply and demand remains unchanged, and pig prices are expected to show a stable trend with slight gains.