U.S. beef exports for the week of July 4-10 slowed to 11,400 metric (mt) – 24 percent below the previous four-week average – due in part to the Independence Day holiday weekend, and possibly due to uncertainty in the market as prices hit new highs. Primary destinations were Japan (3,800 mt, -19 percent), Mexico (1,800 mt, -14 percent), Hong Kong (1,800 mt, -21 percent), South Korea (1,600 mt, -29 percent), Canada (1,100 mt, -34 percent) and Taiwan (390 mt, -53 percent).
Beef net sales of 9,000 mt were down 37 percent from the previous four-week average and were mainly reported for Japan (3,500 mt, -1 percent), Mexico (1,900 mt, -17 percent), Korea (1,400 mt, -35 percent), Canada (1,200 mt, +14 percent), Taiwan (300 mt, -54 percent) and Hong Kong (300 mt, -90 percent).
U.S. pork exports were also lower at 6,900 mt, down 29 percent from the previous four-week average. Primary destinations were Mexico (2,400 mt, -39 percent), Japan (1,200 mt, -21 percent), Canada (700 mt, -46 percent), China (600 mt, +77 percent), Hong Kong (500 mt, -10 percent) and Korea (180 mt, -64 percent).
Pork net sales totaled 3,400 mt, down 70 percent from the previous four-week average, and were mainly reported for Japan (800 mt, -48 percent), China (500 mt, +57 percent), the Philippines (400 mt, +60 percent), Mexico (400 mt, -93 percent) and Korea (400 mt, -35 percent) and Canada (250 mt, -79 percent). Adjustments resulted in negative net sales for the week for Hong Kong (-100 mt). As a caveat, export sales data reported by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) through mandatory price reporting indicated that pork export sales (for primal cuts, excluding variety meats, trimmings, and added ingredients) held strong, actually increasing 20 percent from the previous four-week average. The AMS data does not include sales for Canada and Mexico.
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