Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hog futures closed mixed on Tuesday as front-month contracts stumbled in a setback from recent gains, while deferred contracts rose on expectations for increased demand from China due to an outbreak of a fatal hog disease. Gains in the market have been fueled by worries about an epidemic of African […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Deferred CME hogs extend gains on China virus outbreak

China eyes U.S. poultry, pork imports in trade talks
Reuters — China would likely lift a ban on U.S. poultry as part of a trade deal and may buy more pork to meet a growing supply deficit, but it is not willing to allow a prohibited growth drug used in roughly half the U.S. hog herd, two sources with knowledge of the negotiations said. […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME hogs push higher as herds in China suffer from virus
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hog futures closed mostly higher on Monday on increasing expectations that China will need to import more pork to compensate for hogs killed in an outbreak of an incurable swine disease. The front-month contract, which is thinly traded, set its highest price in about 21 months as the market rose […] Read more

ADM says to seek early retirements, may cut jobs
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. grain trader Archer Daniels Midland said on Wednesday it will seek voluntary early retirements by some North American employees and may eliminate individual jobs as part of a restructuring of specific areas. The actions are needed to strengthen ADM’s core business and establish the company as a global leader in […] Read more

U.S. criticizes Vietnam ban of glyphosate imports
Chicago/Hanoi | Reuters — U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue on Thursday criticized Vietnam’s move to ban imports of glyphosate-based herbicides, saying the decision would have “devastating impacts on global agricultural production.” Vietnam’s government said in a statement that the toxic level of herbicides containing glyphosate had long been of concern, in the latest display […] Read more

World Pork Expo cancelled over swine fever fears
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. pork industry canceled its annual convention on Wednesday over concerns that international attendees could bring in an incurable hog disease at a time when U.S. farmers are already suffering from trade wars. The decision to scrap the World Pork Expo, held by the National Pork Producers Council in Des […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Hogs limit up on China swine virus fears
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures soared by the company’s daily price limit to new contract highs on Wednesday on increasing worries about the spread of a deadly hog disease in China. Traders expect that China, the world’s biggest hog producer and pork consumer, will need to import more U.S. pork […] Read more

U.S. farmers face devastation following Midwest floods
Winslow, Neb./Chicago | Reuters — Midwestern farmers have been gambling they could ride out the U.S.-China trade war by storing their corn and soybeans anywhere they could — in bins, plastic tubes, in barns or even outside. Now, the unthinkable has happened. Record floods have devastated a wide swath of the Farm Belt across Iowa, […] Read more

Richardson disputes China claim of ‘hazardous pests’ in canola
Beijing/Chicago | Reuters — Canadian agribusiness Richardson International said on Wednesday that canola it shipped to China met regulatory requirements after a Chinese official charged that “hazardous pests” were found in samples taken recently from Canadian canola imports. Beijing this month cancelled Richardson’s registration to ship Canadian canola to China, the world’s top importer of […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Hog futures set two-week peak on pork price hopes
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures jumped to two-week highs on Tuesday amid hopes for increased pork prices, which have been under pressure from large supplies and weakened demand from China. Wholesale pork prices, known as the cutout, rose by $1.01 on Monday to $62.93/cwt for carcasses, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture […] Read more