Pig virus shrinks March-May hog herd more than expected

The U.S. hog herd shrank more than anticipated in the March-May quarter as a deadly pig virus swept through farms, a U.S. Department of Agriculture report showed on Friday. The data also showed that despite higher hog prices in the wake of the deadly Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv), producers had not expanded herds as much as expected, analysts said. They added that Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures could climb as much as their 3-cents per lb daily price limit on Monday, based on Friday’s report. The USDA report showed the U.S. hog herd as of June 1 at 95 percent of the year-ago level, at 62.128 million head.