The Atten Babler Commodities Meat Foreign Exchange (FX) Indices continued to strengthen throughout Dec ’21. The USD/Meat Exporter FX Index and USD/Meat Importer FX Index each increased to 19 month high levels throughout the month while the USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index reached a 15 month high level.

Global Meat Net Trade:

Major net meat exporters are led by the U.S., followed by Brazil, the EU-28, India, Canada and Australia (represented in green in the chart below). Major net meat importers are led by Japan, followed by Russia, Mexico, the U.S., China, the EU-28, Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia (represented in red in the chart below).

The United States accounts for over a quarter of the USD/Meat Exporter FX Index, followed by Brazil at 22% and the EU-28 at 14%. India, Canada and Australia each account for between 5-10% of the index.

Japan accounts for 14% of the USD/Meat Importer FX Index, followed by Russia at 12%. Mexico, the United States, China, the EU-28, Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia each account for between 5-10% of the index.

USD/Meat Exporter FX Index:

The USD/Meat Exporter FX Index increased 2.1 points throughout Dec ’21, finishing at a 19 month high value of 161.0. The USD/Meat Exporter FX Index has increased 8.6 points throughout the past six months and 52.2 points since the beginning of 2014. A strong USD/Meat Exporter FX Index reduces the competitiveness of U.S. meat relative to other exporting regions (represented in green in the Global Meat Net Trade chart), ultimately resulting in less foreign demand, all other factors being equal. USD appreciation against the Brazilian real has accounted for the majority of the gains since the beginning of 2014.

USD appreciation within the USD/Meat Exporter FX Index during Dec ’21 was led by gains against the Brazilian real, followed by gains against the Turkish lira, euro, Australian dollar and Canadian dollar.

USD/Meat Importer FX Index:

The USD/Meat Importer FX Index increased 0.5 points throughout Dec ’21, finishing at a 19 month high value of 157.5. The USD/Meat Importer FX Index has increased 3.4 points throughout the past six months and 41.6 points since the beginning of 2014. A strong USD/Meat Importer FX Index results in less purchasing power for major meat importing countries (represented in red in the Global Meat Net Trade chart), making U.S. meat more expensive to import. USD appreciation against the Russian ruble and Mexican peso has accounted for the majority of the gains since the beginning of 2014.

USD appreciation within the USD/Meat Importer FX Index during Dec ’21 was led by gains against the Russian ruble, followed by gains against the Chilean peso, Canadian dollar and euro. USD declines were exhibited against the Angolan kwanza.

U.S. Meat Export Destinations:

Major destinations for U.S. meat exports are led by Mexico, followed by Japan, China, Canada, and Hong Kong.

Mexico accounts for over a quarter of the USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index, followed by Japan at 11%. China, Canada and Hong Kong each account for between 5-10% of the index.

USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index:

The USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index increased 0.6 points throughout Dec ’21, finishing at a 15 month high value of 167.2. The USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index has increased 4.3 points throughout the past six months and 49.8 points since the beginning of 2014. A strong USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index results in less purchasing power for the traditional buyers of U.S. meat (represented in red in the U.S. Meat Export Destinations chart), ultimately resulting in less foreign demand, all other factors being equal. USD appreciation against the Mexican peso has accounted for the majority of the gains since the beginning of 2014.

USD appreciation within the USD/Domestic Meat Importer FX Index during Dec ’21 was led by gains against the Turkish lira, followed by gains against the Canadian dollar, Russian ruble, Chilean peso and Mexican peso.