Inside Pigs
(German) slaughterhouses scream for pigs
It is early spring at the pig market. Higher pig prices seemed impossible until recently due to the coronavirus in China, but a shortage of pigs ready for slaughter in Germany makes everything different.
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Pig prices have made great strides in recent weeks. The German pork price (VEZG) rose by almost 15 cents in recent weeks to €1,96 per kilo. The €2 limit is rapidly coming back into view. Although the major German slaughterhouses were initially against increases, they now willingly follow suit. Quotes are also rising in the Netherlands, but less rapidly than in Germany.
Tight supply, nervous meat market
The difference in the rate of increase is mainly due to the pig supply. In our Eastern neighbors, pigs ready for slaughter are extremely sparsely bred. In the Netherlands, supply is also tight, but not as critical. The slaughter figures of recent weeks also show this. In the past 3 weeks, the slaughter figure in Germany has consistently remained below the 950.000 limit. In the previous week, the slaughter figure itself fell through the 'lower limit' of 900.000. This means that the number of slaughters remains far behind previous years. German slaughterhouses lack many pigs to fully utilize their slaughter capacity. In the Netherlands, the slaughter figure is fairly similar to last year.
There will also be few pigs next week, traders note. The Internet Exchange responded enthusiastically again today and rose by €0,05 to €2,07 per kilo. This indicates that the German pork price has not yet reached its peak. At the same time, slaughterhouses indicate that further increases are not realistic, as meat sales are still weak. Particularly thanks to the tight pig supply, various meat parts (hams, shoulders, middle) are looking upwards again.
Nevertheless, the meat market feels a bit nervous. Meat sales in China are still uncertain due to the coronavirus, because there are large ones export barriers. In addition, an outbreak of African swine fever in Germany is still hanging over the market.
Increase in DCA Exchange Price
Despite the resistance from slaughterhouses, many pig traders at DCA Markets are opting for a further increase in the DCA Stock Exchange Price 2.0. The quotation for slaughtered pigs increases by €0,05 to €1,87 per kilo. The price of live pigs increases by €0,04 to €1,51 per kilo.