Market News

Cattle trade in Nebraska

The feedlot cattle trade was very quiet on Tuesday afternoon with little signs of business beyond some scattered deals picked up earlier in the day in Nebraska at 134.00 live and 210.00 dressed. Asking prices are around 135.00 to 136.00 in the South and 215.00 plus in the North. It looks like significant trade volume will be delayed until at least Wednesday or Thursday. The kill totaled 111,000 head, even with last week, but 1,000 below last year.

Boxed beef cutout values were steady on the choice and lower on the select on light to moderate demand and offerings. Choice beef was .14 lower at 235.18, and select was 1.46 lower at 227.61.

Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle contracts settled 62 point lower to 15 higher with front month February down the most. Futures held a mixed pattern with narrow ranges for much of the session. The inability for beef values to move sharply higher after last week’s moves caused some uncertainty in the nearby live issues, but live cattle futures seem to be hovering in on price stability around 132.00 per hundredweight.

Feeder cattle ended the session 7 to 77 points higher on Tuesday. The early support in the market quickly eroded from the session highs. The nearby contracts continued to hold gains up to .77 per hundredweight. Firming support in grain markets created the softness in the deferred contracts.

Cattle receipts at the Sioux Falls Regional Livestock at Worthing, South Dakota totaled 6800 head on Monday. Compared to last week feeder steers and heifers were 5.00 to 10.00 lower with instances of down 15.00 to 20.00. The demand was moderate with a moderately active market. Many farmer feeders as well as order buyers got cattle bought. The rocky trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures kept many buyers in check on Monday and pressured the market. Feeder steers medium and large 1 averaging 680 pounds brought 166.08 per hundred weight. Heifers weighting 670 pounds traded at 153.71.

Lean hogs settled 50 to 220 points higher with the February contract up the most as renewed support was based on expectations that firm cash market support is building through the first couple of weeks of the 2016 year and will continue to be seen over the near future.

Barrows and gilts in the Iowa/Minnesota direct trade closed 1.61 higher at 52.50 weighted average on a carcass basis, the West was up 1.41 at 52.29 and the East had no price comparison at 50.82. Missouri direct base carcass meat price was steady from 43.00 to 47.00. Midwest hogs on a live basis were steady from 30.00 to 40.00.

The pork carcass cutout value was up .01 at 70.48 FOB plant.

While this week’s hog kill should be somewhat smaller than last week, if it totals close to 2.32 or 2.33 million head, it could still eclipse early 2015 by as much as 4%.

The Tuesday hog slaughter was estimated by USDA at 439,000 head, 5,000 more than last week and last year.