Market News

Cattle futures pressured by bearish supply

At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, live and feeder cattle were pressured by supply bearishness in low trade volume and today’s lower wholesale trade also added pressure to prices.  October live cattle closed $.55 lower at $111.17 and December live cattle closed $.85 lower at $115.97.

Packer inquiry has been generally light with just a few scattered bids noted in parts of Kansas and Nebraska at $109 live and $173 dressed.  Buying interest could begin to improve around midweek, but don’t be surprised if significant business is delayed until Thursday or even Friday.  Asking prices have been suggested around $113.00 plus in the South and $178.00 to $180.00 in the North.

Boxed beef closed lower on light to moderate demand and offerings.  Choice is down $1.15 at $197.66 and Select closed $.72 lower at $189.85.

At the Callaway Livestock Center in Missouri, receipts were up on the week.  Compared to the previous week’s auction lightweight steer calves sold with a higher undertone on a light test and calves 500 to 650 pounds were $2.00 to $5.00 higher.  Feeder heifers were steady to $4.00 lower.  The USDA says demand was good with a moderate supply.  The market continues to find support from the recent higher fed cattle market and the abundant corn crop being harvested.   Feeder supply was 56 percent steers and 54 percent of the offering was more than 600 pounds.  Feeder steers, Medium and Large 1’s 550 to 595 pounds were $175.00 to $184.00 and Medium and Large 1’s 858 to 875 pounds were $157.50 to $167.25.  Feeder heifers, Medium and Large 1’s 550 to 572 pounds were $146.00 to $151.25 and Medium and Large 1’s 705 pounds were $151.50.

Estimated cattle slaughter is 117,000 head – down 1,000 on the week and up 2,000 on the year.

At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, lean hogs closed sharply lower on profit-taking.  With heavy production and overbought positions, the market could attract selling interests.  Lower pork prices at the midday also added additional pressure to contracts.  The USDA’s livestock slaughter numbers come out on Thursday and Cold Storage numbers on Monday.  December lean hogs closed $1.52 lower at $62.17 and February lean hogs closed $1.15 lower at $67.15.

Cash hogs closed sharply higher despite the seasonally large runs of hogs.  With strong packer margins and a steady supply of market ready numbers, don’t look for a slowdown in the market’s momentum – or a drastic reduction in chain speed for that matter anytime soon.

Barrows and gilts at the Iowa/Southern Minnesota closed up $1.75 with a range of $58.00 to $62.50 with an average of $61.41; the Western Corn Belt closed $1.70 with a range of $53.00 to $62.50 and an average of $61.27; the Eastern Corn Belt had no comparison with a range of $56.75 to $61.00 and an average of $59.30; and the National Daily Direct closed $2.07 higher with a range of $53.00 to $62.50 an average of $60.44.

Butcher hogs at the Midwest cash markets are steady at $35.00 to $40.00.

At the Interior Missouri Direct, barrows and gilts are steady at $44.00 to $49.00.  The USDA says supply and demand are light to moderate.  Sows are steady with sows under 500 pounds $23.00 to $26.00 and sows over 500 pounds $26.00 to $30.00.

At Illinois, slaughter sows are firm at $25.00 to $34.00.  The USDA says demand was moderate to good for moderate to heavy offerings.  Barrows and gilts are firm at $36.00 to $41.00 with moderate to good demand for moderate offerings.

Pork closed steady with a weak undertone – down $.44 at $74.81.  The primals were mostly steady to higher except the loin, which saw a $3.93 decline.

Estimated hog slaughter is 455,000 head, down 8,000 on the week and up 11,000.