The U.S. hog and pig inventory hasn’t ex­­panded as much as economists and others have feared, economists said last week after the release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) quarterly hogs and pigs report.

"The worry had been we ex­­panded the herd more," said Chris Hurt, professor of ag economics at Purdue University.

The U.S. inventory of all hogs and...