Taking a look at the Lean Hog Futures contract prices one really wonders whether we are setting up for the same situation as last year. Everyone knows that hog prices will get substantially higher over time but the question is a little confused by the seasonal pattern.
Current prices indicate that packers are making a lot of money since their demand is the sum of both domestic demand and international demand. The futures today and for the recent past show the December contract above the October for 2008, even though the volume of animals in the fourth quarter of the year almost always is the highest volume of the year.
