China to Release Pork From State Reserves Ahead of Holidays

(Bloomberg) -- Terms of Trade is a daily newsletter that untangles a world embroiled in trade wars. Sign up here. 

China will sell 10,000 tons of pork from state reserves on Sept. 19 in a bid to cool down surging prices of the staple in the world’s largest consumer before National Day holidays.

• Country will release the meat via a bidding process, with each company restricted to no more than 300 tons, according to a website statement by China Merchandise Reserve Management Center, which manages state pork reserves

Key Insights

• Volume is seen as too small to cap pork prices, which have climbed to record high, said Jim Huang, head of industry consulting firm www.china-data.com.cn
  • Pork consumption in China may drop to 52 million tons in 2019 and to 48 million tons in 2020 due to lower supplies, compared with 56 million tons last year, according to China’s agriculture ministry
• The government has said that it would release state reserves before key holidays, and more sales are likely ahead of the New Year and Spring Festival, Huang says

Get More

• China holds about 1 million tons of frozen pork in stockpiles, including reserves held by central and city governments as well as commercial firms, according to Huang
• China’s beef imports soared to a record in August as a surge in pork prices spurred consumers to look for alternative meats

To contact the reporter on this story: Niu Shuping in Beijing at nshuping@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anna Kitanaka at akitanaka@bloomberg.net, Atul Prakash, James Poole

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.