鸡蛋：情绪抬头，压力后移

Report Summary 1. Report Industry Investment Rating No relevant content provided. 2. Core Viewpoint of the Report - Pre - holiday inventory accumulation falling short of expectations, the late Spring Festival and other supply - demand mismatch factors led to an unexpected increase in egg spot prices during the pre - holiday stocking period. The near - term contracts on the futures market followed the increase rationally. However, after the egg - farming industry returned to profitability, the market's inventory accumulation sentiment has clearly emerged. It is highly likely that the supply - side pressure will be postponed, which may keep the egg prices under pressure in the first half of the year after the Spring Festival. Considering the limited decline in the current inventory and the uncertainty of future capacity reduction, under the assumption of low and relatively stable cost, the post - holiday near - term contracts are more likely to be anchored to the cost. For the far - end contracts, due to the expectation of recovery in chicken replenishment, it is difficult to achieve excess profits. Currently, the premiums of each futures contract are still relatively high. The recommended strategy is to short on rebounds [2][17]. 3. Summary by Sections 3.1 Pre - holiday Stocking Period: Spot Prices Rose More than Expected - Since New Year's Day, stimulated by pre - holiday stocking sentiment, egg spot prices have been rising continuously, with the increase approaching that of the peak season in the first half of September. As of late January, the price in Hebei Guantao, an external - sales production area, was above 3.6 yuan per catty, a nearly 30% increase from the low point at the beginning of the month. In Henan, an internal - sales production area, the spot price has exceeded 4 yuan per catty. As a result, the egg - farming industry returned to profitability after 3 months [4]. - The abnormal rise in egg prices was driven by several factors: a. The production capacity decreased month - on - month. The inventory scale peaked and declined in September last year. The number of newly - hatched chickens since July last year decreased year - on - year and month - on - month. The number of slaughtered laying hens increased significantly, and the average age of hens dropped below 490 days. The proportion of small eggs dropped to 13.81%, significantly lower than the peak of 18.86% last year, while the proportion of large eggs rose to 42.81% [5]. b. The late Spring Festival led to a delay in demand, and the hoarding sentiment boosted the price increase. Due to the late Spring Festival and insufficient early - stage inventory accumulation, there was an unexpected price increase, and local hoarding speculation further amplified the short - term increase. c. The continuously strong prices of substitutes such as vegetables and pork also supported the rise in egg prices. Since January, short - sellers in the futures market have covered their positions to repair the basis, and the near - term contracts have been particularly strong, but still more restrained compared to the spot market [5]. 3.2 Market Inventory Accumulation Sentiment Emerged - The unexpected price increase brought the egg - farming industry back to the profit range. The current high spot valuation and high premium of the far - end futures contracts on the market reflect the market sentiment. However, the inventory is still high and the age structure of hens is young, and there is still uncertainty in the supply - side rhythm. If the market's optimistic expectations are over - advanced, the expected capacity reduction may slow down or even stop. Currently, signs of inventory accumulation sentiment have emerged [10]. - a. The age of slaughtered hens has risen counter - seasonally from 484 days to 490 days, and the number of slaughtered hens has decreased, indicating an increase in the sentiment of delaying hen slaughter. Considering the young age structure of hens, molting during the festival and a new peak in egg - laying after the festival are common practices, which will increase the post - festival supply pressure [10]. b. The sentiment of replenishing chicken chicks and young hens has emerged. The prices of chicken chicks and egg - laying chicks have risen for 4 consecutive weeks. In December, the number of replenished chickens stopped falling and increased. Xiaoming Co., Ltd.'s chicken chick sales and prices increased by 8.3% and 19.6% respectively in December, and the utilization rate of breeding eggs at sample points has risen from 57% at the beginning of the year to 68% currently, indicating that the market's replenishment sentiment is on the rise [13]. 3.3 Post - festival and Longer - term Egg Prices will be Anchored to the Cost - The market is closely watching the changes in inventory. However, inventory changes are uncertain and will be dynamically adjusted based on current and future expected profits. As long as there is an expectation of profit, the reduced production capacity can be quickly replenished through increased replenishment or delayed hen slaughter. The key factor is the change in the cost. As long as the cost remains at the current low level and there is a profit in expectation or reality, it is difficult to achieve future capacity reduction [16]. - In the short - term, although the spot price increased more than expected during the pre - holiday stocking period, during the festival, demand will disappear while supply remains the same, so inventory accumulation is inevitable. Except in extremely short - supply years, egg prices will almost always fall below the cost line. In the long - term, with the upcoming spring chick - replenishing season, considering the low cost, high expectations, and a 4 - 5 - month egg - laying period after hatching, it is not necessary or inevitable for the production capacity to continue to decline. Under the condition of low cost, it is difficult to achieve excess profits in the far - end contracts [16].