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August beef, pork exports slide

U.S. beef and pork exports sagged in August compared to year ago.  USDA data compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation showed August beef exports to be slightly more than 84,000 metric tons, down 18 percent from a year ago.  The value if the exported beef was down 24 percent to $498 million, the lowest in 18 months.

August U.S. pork exports totaled almost 160,000 metric tons, which is only one percent lower than a year ago, but its value – about $430 million – is down 19 percent from last August.  It’s the lowest monthly value in more than four years.

The reason for the slide is partly because of a tough global business climate becoming tougher when China devalued its yuan (you-ON) in August.  There aren’t that many direct U.S. meat exports to China, but U.S. Meat Export Federation CEO Phil Seng says concerns created by the devaluation about the global economy were felt around the world.

For the first eight months of this year, beef exports are down 11 percent in volume to 703,000 metric tons.  It’s worth $4.31 billion, which is 5 percent lower than last year.

U.S. pork exports for January through August are down 5 percent in volume to 1.4 million metric tons, while value is down 17 percent to $3.75 billion.