For the first time in living memory, Asia’s economy is expected to contract by 1.6%, a downgrade from April’s zero-growth projection, said Chang Yong Rhee, from the International Monetary Fund in a blog Tuesday. This is a cut-down version of the blog. Asia’s first-quarter economic growth was greater than projected partly because of early stabilization … Read More

In its latest World Economic Outlook, the International Monetary Fund said global economic growth was projected at a minus 4.9% in 2020, 1.9 percentage points below the April 2020 forecast. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a more negative effect on activity in the first half of 2020 than expected, and the recovery was projected to … Read More

Large commodity investment firms, called managed money in the trade, held their collective net long live cattle futures position nearly flat during the week ended Tuesday as hedgers increased their net short position. The data came from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday. Managed money’s new net long live cattle … Read More

The US inventory of all hogs and pigs on June 1, was a record 79.634 million head, up 3.909 million, or 5.16%, from 75.725 million a year earlier, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service said Thursday in its Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report. The June 1 number also was up 2.005 million head, or 2.58%, … Read More

It’s no secret that US meat production was down in April as packing plant after packing plant closed because of the COVID-19 virus, but a look at the numbers drives the point home. The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service said monthly beef, pork and poultry production plummeted in April, dropping well below last year and … Read More

Few would argue that nutrition is key when raising livestock, yet many cow/calf operators fail to address this adequately, leaving their cows and calves with deficiencies, said Dr. John Pollreisz, managing veterinarian for Zoetis. Zoetis’ web site said it is a global animal health company, delivering medicines, vaccines and diagnostic products, along with biodevices, genetic … Read More

As meat production dropped because of shuttered slaughter and processing plants from COVID-19 illnesses, it seems the nation’s cold storage supplies filled much of the gap between meat production and consumption. The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service Monday released its monthly Cold Storage report, outlining the quantity of various meats stored in commercial freezers around … Read More