Market News

Cattle futures mixed waiting on direct business

At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, live and feeder cattle were mixed, with boxed beef mixed at midday, waiting on direct business.  June live cattle closed $.50 lower at $216.32 and August live cattle closed $.02 higher at $211.62.  August feeder cattle closed $.37 lower at $306 and September feeder cattle closed $.05 lower at $305.05. 

Direct cash cattle trade activity was quiet again on Tuesday.  Asking prices were at $224 to $225 live in the South, but weren’t established in the North.  Bids remained elusive.  Showlists are lower across all major feeding areas. Look for significant trade volume to develop sometime Thursday or Friday.

At the Callaway Livestock Center in Missouri, steer calves 400 to 500 pounds were $10 to $25 higher, steers 500 to 700 pounds were $10 to $15 higher, and the best test on the pot loads of yearling steers, was 885 to 920 pounds were $3 to $8 higher.  Heifer calves weighing 400 to 450 pounds were $10 to $20 higher, and heifers weighing 450 to 600 pounds were firm to $10 higher.  The USDA says demand was very good on a heavy offering of top-quality calves and yearlings.  Receipts were up on the week and the year.  Feeder supply included 62 percent steers, and 33 percent of the offering was over 600 pounds.  Medium and Large 1 feeder steers 550 to 595 pounds brought $387 to $419.50 and feeder steers 650 to 674 pounds brought $334 to $356.  Medium and Large 1 feeder heifers 502 to 549 pounds brought $342 to $370 and feeder heifers 557 to 595 pounds brought $337 to $367.

Boxed beef closed mixed with light to moderate demand for solid offerings.  Choice was $1.96 higher at $350.10 and Select closed $.76 lower at $334.47.  The Choice/Select spread was $15.63. Estimated cattle slaughter was 121,000 head – even on the week and down about 3,000 on the year.

Lean hog futures closed mixed on spread trade, with pork values higher during the session.  June lean hogs closed $1.20 higher at $99.50 and July lean hogs closed $.72 higher at $103.20.

Cash hogs closed lower with a solid negotiated run.  The market continues to operate on a very consistently inconsistent basis.  Demand for U.S. pork on the global market, outside of China, has been relatively strong, and that is overall supportive to prices.  While there is a trade agreement in principle with China, it could take a bit for pork sales to start to tick back up.  The industry continues to monitor supplies of market-ready hogs and hog weights. Barrows and gilts at the National Daily Direct closed $1.02 lower with a base range of $87 to $98 and a weighted average of $94.27; the Iowa/Minnesota had no comparison but a weighted average of $94.62; the Western Corn Belt had no comparison but a weighted average of $94.40.  Prices at the Eastern Corn Belt were not reported due to confidentiality.

Butcher hog prices at the Midwest cash markets are steady at $66. At Illinois, slaughter sow prices were $3 higher with moderate demand for moderate offerings at $43 to $55.  Barrows and gilts were steady with moderate demand for moderate offerings at $52 to $62.  Boars ranged from $25 to $35 and $18 to $25.

Pork values closed higher – up $.51 higher at $97.02.  Ribs and butts were sharply higher.  Hams were also higher.  Picnics, bellies, and loins were lower. Estimated hog slaughter was 481,000 head – down 4,000 on the week and down about 1,500 on the year.