Livestock Market News - Situation and Outlook Source: Uof A
Net value of U.S. Beef Trade Record High in 2011: The combined dollar value of U.S. cattle, beef, and beef product exports surged to a new record high in 2011. Cattle prices jumped up in 2011 largely because of new dollars flowing into the industry from overseas consumers. Beef and cattle trade values from USDA’s Foreign Agriculture Service are summarized into the following groups by the LMIC: 1) Live Cattle & Calves; 2) Beef/Veal, which includes fresh and frozen bone-in, boneless, carcass beef, corned beef, beef sausages, and salted beef; 3) Variety Meats, which includes all edible offal and meat extracts; 4) Beef Tallow and Greases; and 5) Hides. In 2011, the value of U.S. cattle and beef exports totaled a record $8.1 billion, 28%, or nearly $2.0 billion higher than in 2010. Exports of beef and veal were record large at $4.7 billion versus $3.5 billion in 2010. The total value of hide exports was $1.5 billion, followed by tallow and greases at $765 million, and variety meats at a record $686 million. In addition, live cattle and calves exports were valued at $376 million, a record as well. Export values for all categories in 2011 were above a year earlier. Last year, the U.S. imported a total of $4.7 billion worth of cattle, beef, and beef products, slightly larger (about $200 million) than 2010 and 7% less than the record import value set in 2007. Beef/veal continued to be the largest category at $2.9 billion, which was slightly higher than 2010’s. Despite declines in import tonnage, the lower U.S. dollar relative to trading partner currencies contributed to a higher beef/veal import value. The import value of cattle and calves totaled $1.5 billion, followed by variety meats at $143 million, and hides and tallow/greases which were both $51 million. Net export value is the difference between the dollar values of exports versus imports. For 2011, the U.S. maintained its net exporter status with a record value of $3.4 billion compared to $1.8 billion in 2010. The U.S. was a net exporter in all categories except cattle and calves, which has historically been the case. Net exports of U.S. beef/veal accounted for more than half of the net export value in 2011, followed by hides and tallows/greases. A variety factors will continue to impact the value of U.S. cattle/beef sector exports and imports in 2012, nonetheless the U.S. cattle/beef sector is expected to remain a strong net exporter. Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center (www.lmic.info)