8/23/19 was once again down, this time by -0.87 and the model projects the component on Friday's kill will drop between -0.75 and -1.05. Not only did the component fall but but the primal cuts dropped another -0.29. Packers' margins firmed a little to $9.24/hog.

With their lower bids, packers purchased 103.1% of the daily moving average purchases by the time the after noon reports were released. The percentage on Index hogs was a bit higher at 106.2%. Generally on Friday's packers will purchase something in the range of 120%. This tells me that packers will have been busy buying hogs Friday afternoon. But it is not clear whether packers will have lowered their bids further and out of fear of lower prices to come, producers will have anxiously sold or whether packers will have sweetened their bids to round out their weekend slaughter needs.

I tend to think if anyone blinked, it will have been the producers.

The President has once again placed another stumbling block in the way of pork exports to China. A totalitarian government like China can place price ceilings, rationing and other control measures to limit inflation and control imports. So we wait and watch to see the next battle in this trade war unfold.

Best wishes,

Doc