Analysis Pigs
Pig price can forget Christmas bonus
It is now December and it is becoming increasingly clear that the pig price will no longer benefit from a Christmas bonus this year. The market looks too timid to get the almost stuck quotes moving.
Read this article?
Become a subscriber and get instant access
Choose the subscription that suits you
The term 'stuck' may sound harsh, but the fact is that the German pork price has been stable for eight weeks in a row. The same stable price pattern is visible in the Netherlands and surrounding countries. The well-organized pig supply is sufficient to meet the demand from slaughterhouses.
Spanish influences
The need for pigs ready for slaughter is there, but it is not excessively great. This is because meat sales are still flat. There is still no question of an explosive increase before Christmas. The expectation in the market is that meat demand will pick up somewhat in the last weeks before Christmas, but not much is expected anymore. This is also because the negative influence from Spain on the European meat market is great. In contrast to here, meat stocks are quite large there and they are brought to the European market at 'dump prices'. Demand on the global market is already quite tame, in line with previous months.
Broken weeks
In Germany, 772.794 pigs were slaughtered last week. Based on the slaughter capacity that has now been scaled down, these are normal numbers. With 291.217 pigs, the Dutch slaughter figure unexpectedly took a step back last week. The 300.000 slaughter mark has not yet been passed, but this may happen in the last week before Christmas. Historically, the slaughter figure often peaks, although in 2022 this was already at the beginning of December. This is followed by the broken weeks around the holidays. It cannot be ruled out that this will lead to some price pressure, because at least three full processing days will be lost. The meat processing industry will switch down a few gears until halfway through week 2 in the new year. A reduction in the pig price is not currently in the cards, but the market does not look very solid either. In the background, slaughterhouses sometimes create a mood. In any case, a possible reduction would be very sad for the primary sector, given that the Christmas bonus is also in danger of being lost. It hasn't gotten that far yet.
DCA Benchmark Price - Pigs
For next week, the DCA stock market price will remain at €2,08 per kilo for the slaughtered pigs. The price of live pigs also remains the same at €1,65 per kilo.
Click here for an explanation of the listing.