Pi Securities has upgraded its investment rating for Thailand’s agro and food sector, citing a strong rebound in meat prices during August, particularly for pork and chicken. The brokerage attributes this uptrend to tightening supply following earlier outbreaks of animal diseases, prompting farmers to rush products to market.
The analyst wrote that pork prices reached THB 72/kg in August, up 3% YoY and 13% MoM, marking the first YoY increase in a year and the highest level since July 2025, when prices hit THB 76/kg. This recovery is attributed to ongoing tight supply conditions following recent disease outbreaks.
During the period, chicken prices climbed to THB 45/kg (+11% YoY, +7% QoQ), the highest in the past three years. July chicken exports totaled $394 million (-3% YoY, +1% MoM). While frozen chicken exports to China faced a 25% drop YoY, processed chicken exports grew 7% YoY and 3% MoM to a record $291 million.
Corn feed prices declined for a third consecutive month to THB 10/kg (+2% YoY, -20% MoM), reflecting the start of the domestic harvest season. However, soybean meal prices rose to THB 16.9/kg (+21% YoY, +4% MoM), in line with global market trends.
In Vietnam, according to data from CPF, July pork prices were 62,702 dong/kg (-1% YoY, -2% MoM), with unofficial August prices stable at 55,000-58,000 dong/kg. China’s pork prices remained flat at 10-11 yuan/kg in August.
Pi Securities maintains a ‘Market Weight’ stance on the sector pending September price data, projecting prices to remain high before easing in October due to the traditional vegetarian festival. The brokerage names CPF as its top pick, expecting the company to benefit from rising pork and chicken prices.
For 2Q26, sector revenues increased QoQ following seasonal trends but were lower YoY, except for TVO, which benefited from higher soybean prices. Net profits followed the same pattern, with the exception of CPF, whose figures declined QoQ but improved on a normalized basis when excluding extraordinary items.
As a result, Pi Securities recommends ‘Buy’ ratings on CPF, GFPT, and TVO, with target prices of THB 25.20, 13.10, and 29.00 per share, respectively.
