wheats.aiNBS CHINA · TEN-DAY PRICES · 31 OCT 2026
China hog price and global pork demand
China raises and eats about half of the world’s pork: 51% of world consumption in 2026 by USDA’s count. Its live hog price therefore sets the tone for global pork trade, from Brazilian and Spanish export volumes to US packer margins. The National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS) reports the national average price of crossbred live hogs (“外三元”, a cross of three imported breeds) every ten days in its survey of circulation-market prices. Prices on this page: 引自国家统计局网站 (cited from the NBS website), www.stats.gov.cn.
- Live hog price, China
- ¥9.3/kg
- Change on the prior ten days
- −0.5
- Hog / corn price ratio
- 4.36
- China share of world pork use
- 50.6%
China live hog price
Crossbred live hogs averaged ¥9.3 per kilogram nationally in the ten days to 31 Oct 2026, against ¥12.0 a year earlier (−22.5%). Over the past 52 weeks the price ranged from ¥9.0 to ¥12.9. China’s hog cycle runs roughly three to four years: high prices draw in new sows, the herd overshoots, and losses then force liquidation until supply tightens again.
| Ten days to | Live hogs (¥/kg) | Change | Hog / corn ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Oct 2026 | 9.3 | −0.5 | 4.36 |
| 20 Oct 2026 | 9.8 | −0.5 | 4.59 |
| 30 Sept 2026 | 10.3 | −0.4 | 4.75 |
| 20 Sept 2026 | 10.7 | −0.3 | 4.84 |
| 10 Sept 2026 | 11.0 | +0.1 | 4.92 |
| 31 Aug 2026 | 10.9 | −0.1 | 4.87 |
| 20 Aug 2026 | 11.0 | +0.6 | 4.92 |
| 10 Aug 2026 | 10.4 | ±0.0 | 4.64 |
| 31 Jul 2026 | 10.4 | n/a | 4.59 |
Hog-to-corn price ratio
Feed is the largest cost of raising a hog, so the price of a kilogram of live hog divided by the price of a kilogram of corn is the quickest read on farm margins. Chinese authorities watch a hog-to-grain price ratio as an early-warning signal and buy or release state pork reserves when it moves too far. Their official ratio uses the National Development and Reform Commission’s own monitoring prices; the ratio here is built from the NBS hog and yellow corn prices (corn ¥2,132 per tonne in the ten days to 31 Oct 2026), so its level can differ while the direction is the same.
Dalian live hog futures (LH)
China’s hog futures trade on the Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) under the code LH. They are physically delivered and quoted in yuan per tonne of live weight, so an NBS price of ¥9.3/kg corresponds to about ¥9,300 per tonne.
| Trading unit | 16 tonnes per lot |
|---|---|
| Price quotation | CNY per tonne |
| Minimum price movement | ¥5 per tonne |
| Contract months | Jan · Mar · May · Jul · Sep · Nov |
| Last trading day | 4th-to-last trading day of the contract month |
| Settlement | Physical delivery at DCE-designated warehouses and vehicle-delivery sites |
DCE futures prices are exchange market data that need a DCE licence to republish, so they are not shown on Wheats. The NBS price above is the official spot reference.
Global pork demand
USDA puts world pork consumption at 119.3 million tonnes (carcass weight equivalent) in 2026, +0.5% on 2025. Demand is concentrated: China, the European Union and the United States together eat 75% of it, and Vietnam, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Japan follow. Imports by China, Mexico, Japan, South Korea and the Philippines are what US, EU and Brazilian exporters compete for.
| Market | 2026 | 2025 | Change | Share of world |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 60.35 | 60.44 | −0.1% | 50.6% |
| European Union | 19.18 | 19.08 | +0.5% | 16.1% |
| United States | 9.86 | 9.86 | ±0.0% | 8.3% |
| Vietnam | 4.19 | 4.07 | +2.9% | 3.5% |
| Russia | 3.78 | 4.03 | −6.2% | 3.2% |
| Brazil | 3.20 | 3.04 | +5.3% | 2.7% |
| Mexico | 2.92 | 2.83 | +3.2% | 2.4% |
| Japan | 2.79 | 2.71 | +3.0% | 2.3% |
| South Korea | 2.46 | 2.37 | +3.8% | 2.1% |
| Philippines | 1.70 | 1.69 | +0.6% | 1.4% |
China pork balance
| Year | Production | Imports | Consumption |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 59.68 | 0.84 | 60.35 |
| 2025 | 59.38 | 1.19 | 60.44 |
| 2024 | 57.06 | 1.31 | 58.27 |
| 2023 | 57.94 | 1.90 | 59.74 |
| 2022 | 55.41 | 2.13 | 57.43 |
| 2021 | 47.50 | 4.33 | 51.72 |
Sources
China prices: 引自国家统计局网站 www.stats.gov.cn, National Bureau of Statistics of China, market prices of important means of production in circulation (ten-day releases since November 2021). Pork balances: USDA Production, Supply and Distribution (US public domain). DCE contract terms: Dalian Commodity Exchange. Wheats provides information aggregation, not trading recommendations. See also the lean hog index, CME lean hog futures and the pork cutout value.