Market News

Cattle, hog futures lower to start the week

At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, live and feeder cattle were lower on technical weakness.  June live cattle closed $.52 lower at $253.37 and August live cattle closed $.77 lower at $247.15.  August feeder cattle closed $2.60 lower at $358.85 and September feeder cattle closed $2.97 lower at $356.20. 

Direct cash cattle trade activity was quiet to start the week, typical for a Monday.  Showlists are lighter in Texas, but steady in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado.  Bids and asking prices didn’t surface. Significant trade volume isn’t expected to take place until sometime Thursday or Friday. 

At midsession, at the Oklahoma National Stockyards, feeder steers and heifers are mostly steady.  The USDA says demand has been moderate to good despite lower cattle futures.  Steer and heifer calves have been mostly steady on a light test.  Quality has been mostly average, with feeder cattle in medium to fleshy conditions, with a few thin.  Receipts are up on the week, but down on the year.  Feeder supply included 52 percent steers with 77 percent of the offering weighing more than 600 pounds.  Medium and Large 1 feeder steers 612 to 627 pounds brought $425 to $456 and feeder steers 773 to 790 pounds brought $363 to $382.  Medium and Large 1 feeder heifers 601 to 647 pounds brought $362 to $398 and feeder heifers 705 to 741 pounds brought $347 to $365. 

Boxed beef closed sharply higher and higher with solid demand for relatively light offerings.  Choice was $2.89 higher at $392.14 and Select was $.98 higher at $390.23.  The Choice/Select spread was $1.91. Estimated cattle slaughter was 106,000 head, up 4,000 on the week and down more than 8,000 on the year. 

Lean hog futures were pressured by ongoing concerns about demand certainty.  June lean hogs closed $.22 lower at $98.52 and July lean hogs closed $.60 lower at $102.75. 

Cash hogs closed sharply higher with a light negotiated run.  Processors had to get more aggressive in their procurement efforts to move numbers at the start of the week.  Supplies of market-ready hogs are ample and there is plenty of pork available.  There have been some definite bright spots when it comes to demand for US pork on the global market, that has been crucial to price support, but there are still some long-term concerns that linger.  The official start to summer grilling season is just around the corner, and that will likely provide a boost to domestic demand, especially as pork remains a competitively priced protein in the retail space. Barrows and gilts at the National Daily Direct were $3.36 higher with a base range of $87 to $95.75 and a weighted average of $94.88; the Iowa/Minnesota had no comparison but a weighted average of $95.44; the Western Corn Belt was $3.79 higher with a weighted average of $95.44.  Prices at the Eastern Corn Belt were not reported due to confidentiality. 

At Illinois, slaughter sows were steady with moderate demand for light offerings at $47 to $59.  Barrows and gilts were steady with moderate demand for moderate offerings at $47 to $57.  Boars ranged from $8 to $15 and $5 to $8. 

Pork values closed higher, up $.80 at $98.36.  Butts were sharply higher.  Loins and bellies were up.  Picnics, hams, and ribs were all lower.  Estimated hog slaughter was 460,000 head, down 2,000 on the week and down more than 21,000 on the year.