Hogs Post Biggest Weekly Gain Since March on China; Cattle Futures Climb

(Bloomberg) -- Hog futures in Chicago had the
biggest weekly gain in four months on speculation China may
import more U.S. pork to make up for a drop in domestic
supplies. Cattle rose.

China may have to buy as much as 100,000 additional tons of
pork worldwide after the spread of ``blue ear,'' a respiratory
disease in pigs, led to a culling of herds that drove domestic
pork prices up 75 percent in the past year. Hog futures surged
4.7 percent this week, the most since mid-March.


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Cattle Futures Rise in Chicago on Shrinking Supplies; Hog Futures Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Cattle futures in Chicago rose from
a five-month low on signs that supplies available to U.S. beef
processors are decreasing. Hogs also gained.

An estimated 711,000 head of cattle will be slaughtered
this week, more than the 708,000 slaughtered the same week last
year, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show. About
11.297 million head of cattle were in feedlots as of May 1, down
from 11.559 million a year earlier, the USDA said.


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