São Paulo cattle prices turn up in mid-July as chicken extends gains

Wholesale meat prices in Greater São Paulo moved in opposite directions through the first half of July, according to agronews.tv.br. Bone-in beef and pork slipped, while chilled chicken kept gaining ground over the same period. The outlet ties the split directly to the state of domestic demand, the population's purchasing power and the rhythm of foreign trade, three variables that pulled the main animal proteins apart in the space of two weeks.

A cautious first fortnight

The downward path in beef and pork is explained above all by the moderate domestic consumption typical of the month's first half, agronews.tv.br reports. In this window, wholesale operators tend to adopt a more cautious stance on restocking, avoiding a build-up of goods without a guaranteed, fast route to the final buyer. That caution set the tone for both red meats and left little room to defend prices at the wholesale stage.

Beef slides, then turns at the close

In beef, the devaluation was tied to the recent fall in the arroba price of finished cattle (boi gordo) and to the clear difficulty distributors faced in passing any costs on to retail, according to agronews.tv.br. The outlet says the sector's losses were cushioned by two strategic factors.

The tone shifted as the week ended. On Friday 17 July, the price of finished cattle in São Paulo state recorded its first rise in more than a month, Globo Rural reported, citing Scot Consultoria. The move marks a recovery for the cattle market after a slide that had run for more than a month.

Pork weighed down despite firm exports

Pork faced a similar picture. While the volume of shipments abroad remained strong and helped balance total supply, domestic demand stayed weak, keeping wholesale prices under continuous negative pressure, agronews.tv.br reports. The export channel, in other words, absorbed supply but could not lift the home-market quotation.

Chicken gains from trading down

Against the retreat in the other proteins, chilled chicken held a clearly favourable performance in Greater São Paulo. The main lever behind the gain is price, agronews.tv.br says: historically a more affordable option for family budgets than beef or pork, poultry benefits from a natural substitution effect. With household budgets tighter, many consumers migrate to chicken, ensuring firm and stable demand capable of sustaining quotations at elevated levels in the wholesale market.

What comes next

For the remainder of the month, price behaviour will depend fundamentally on a reheating of domestic demand and on the pace of animal supply for slaughter, agronews.tv.br notes. Both red meats hinge on whether the domestic buyer returns, while chicken's firmness rests on the same budget pressure that has been driving the switch away from more expensive cuts.