CME: December Sees Modest Rise in Broiler Exports

US - Steve Meyer and Len Steiner report that the US meat trade statistics for December were released on Friday and have provided some of the report's highlights.
calendar icon 16 February 2010
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Keep in mind that this is based on shipped weight data, rather than the carcass weight statistics which will be released on Monday. Also, find the weekly price/supply data at the bottom of the page.

Broilers: US broiler exports rose modestly in December but keep in mind that this was before Russia decided to ban all US broiler products. Total US exports of fresh/frozen broiler products were 243,347 MT, up 5.5 per cent compared to a year ago.

Pork: Total US pork exports in December were reported to be 124,056 MT, 5.5 per cent lower than the previous month but 14.3 per cent higher than year ago levels. Total shipments of fresh/frozen pork were up 2.7 per cent compared to a year ago, with exports to Japan up 3.8 per cent, exports to Mexico up 3.4 per cent and exports to Canada up 2.7 per cent. Exports of fresh/frozen US pork to China continued to remain weak, down 64 per cent from a year ago but the decline was more than offset by a 73 per cent increase in US exports to Hong Kong. Altogether US shipments of fresh/frozen pork to China/Hong Kong were up 25 per cent compared to year ago levels. So fresh/frozen exports were modestly higher than a year ago but that does not explain the double digit increase. To explain that, one has to look at shipments of prepared or preserved pork, which in December reached 21,198 MT, 151 per cent higher than the previous year. The bulk of this increase was due to a sharp increase in US shipments of prepared/ preserved exports to Mexico, which in December reached 9,658 MT, an almost five fold increase compared to year ago levels.

Beef: US beef exports in December continued to advance higher, in large part due to higher exports to Asian markets. US total beef exports in December were 55,044 MT, 23.1 per cent higher than a year ago. Mexico remains the top market for US beef, and at 16,183 MT it accounted for about a third of all US beef exports. However, exports to Mexico in December also rose 1.4 per cent from a year ago, while shipments to Canada, the second largest US beef market were 9,559 MT, down 1.1 per cent compared to the previous year. US beef shipments to South Korea, on the other hand, surged higher and at 7,085 MT they were 122 per cent higher than a year ago. Exports to Japan were up 22 per cent, while shipments to Vietnam, Taiwan and Hong Kong were up 60.7 per cent, 28.8 per cent and 135.6 per cent, respectively. As Asian economies recover from the sharp contraction they experienced in 2009, they should continue to contributed to the growth in US beef exports. The value of the US dollar remains key, especially the cross currency rates with the Australian dollar and Brazilian real.

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