Negotiated Choice boxed beef weekly average was $19.22 per cwt higher than the previous week, extending the 5 week rally to $266 per cwt.  There is likely some pipeline refilling in preparation for a more open U.S. restaurant industry.  It remains to be seen how demand will actually behave once the U.S. is open at full capacity.

The March 1 Hogs and Pigs report was recently released by USDA NASS which indicated hog supplies are tighter than expected. The report showed that all hogs and pigs were down 1.8% to 74.773 million head which was opposite of pre-report estimates expecting a 0.1% increase from a year ago. The breeding herd was reported at 6.215 million head, down 2.5% and a sharper decline than pre-report estimates, which expected a 1.1% decline.

Trade data for the month of February was released showing beef and veal exports of 250.3 million pounds, down 2.6% from a year ago. South Korea was the top destination with 66.7 million pounds shipped for the month (up 6.6%) which was followed closely by Japan with 66.3 million pounds exported, down 11.7%. Mexico, China, and Canada round out the top five destination for beef exports with shipments of 26.1, 24.2, and 18.0 million pounds, respectively. Exports to Mexico and Canada each posted year-over-year declines of 23.6% and 23.1%, respectively.