Exported US wet-salted hides 20% cheaper
The Leather and Hide Council of America (LHCA) has published official hide export figures for the US for the first month of 2021.
In January this year, packers and traders in the US exported just over 2.2 million hides, 1.95 million wet-salted hides and just over 260,000 wet blue. The total value of these shipments was $84.7 million, made up of $58.4 million for wet salted and $26.3 million for wet blue.
In terms of volume, shipments overall were up by 10.5% year on year, thanks to an increase of 17% in exports of wet-salted hides. Exports of wet blue were down by 21% compared to the same month in 2020.
In value, there was a decline of 14.3% overall. The value of wet-salted exports was down by 8%. For wet blue, the decrease was 25%.
The average price of exported wet-salted hides was $29.93 in January 2021, compared to $38.02 a year earlier, 21% cheaper. Wet blue had an average export price of $101.10 in the first month of this year, compared to $107.22 a year earlier, a fall in price of 5.7%.
