Market News

Midday cash livestock markets

Direct cash cattle trade activity remains quiet, not surprising for a Tuesday.  Bids are elusive. Initial asking prices have surfaced in parts of the South at $205-plus live, while the North remains quiet.  Showlists this week are mixed, higher in Texas, but lower in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado.  Significant trade volume will likely be delayed until the latter half of the week.

At the Joplin Regional Stockyards in Missouri, feeder steers were steady to $15 higher, with the best prices on heavy five-weight steers.  Feeder heifers were steady to $8 higher.  The USDA says supply was heavy with very good demand.  Fourteen head of steers weighing 551 pounds sold for $400/cwt – that is $100 more per head than last week.  Receipts were up on the week and the year.  Feeder supply included 58 percent steers and 59 percent of the offering was over 600 pounds.  Medium and Large 1 feeder steers 652 to 696 pounds brought $307 to $350 and feeder steers 804 to 848 pounds brought $279 to $293.  Medium and Large 1 feeder heifers 501 to 546 pounds brought $315 to $352 and feeder heifers 704 to 742 pounds brought $265 to $282. 

Boxed beef was higher at midday on solid demand for moderate offerings.  Choice is $1.82 higher at $322.98 and Select is $1.43 higher at $309.33.  The Choice/Select spread is $13.65. 

Cash hogs are sharply higher at midday with solid negotiated purchases. Processors are starting the day a little more aggressive in their procurement efforts, bidding up to move needed numbers.  There is some optimism that domestic demand for pork will see an uptick as it remains a more competitively priced protein.  Global demand has been strong for U.S. pork, but the ongoing uncertainty surrounding tariffs can make buyers uneasy and add more volatility.  The industry continues to monitor the availability of market-ready hogs and hog weights. Barrows and gilts at the National Daily Direct are $2.62 higher with a base range of $86 to $92.50 and a weighted average of $90.29; the Iowa/Minnesota and the Western Corn Belt had no comparison but a weighted average of $90.45.  Prices at the Eastern Corn Belt were not reported due to confidentiality. 

Butcher hog prices at the Midwest cash markets are steady at $60. At Illinois, slaughter sow prices were steady with moderate demand for moderate offerings at $60 to $72.  Barrows and gilts were steady with moderate demand for moderate offerings at $51 to $61.  Boars ranged from $20 to $30 and $15 to $25. 

Pork values were weak at midday – down $.21 at $97.44.  Bellies were sharply lower.  Picnics, loins, and butts were lower.  Ribs and hams were higher and sharply higher.