Market News
Cattle, hog futures end the day higher
At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, live and feeder cattle futures started the week higher on another round of technical and commercial buying. August live cattle closed $.70 higher at $100.10 and October live cattle closed $1.25 higher at $103.92. August feeder cattle closed $1.27 higher at $136.15 and September feeder cattle closed $1.37 higher at $137.22.
It was a quiet Monday for direct cash cattle trade activity. Bids and asking prices didn’t surface. Showlists for the week are mixed, somewhat higher in Texas, higher in Kansas, but somewhat lower in Nebraska/Colorado. Look for activity to develop over the balance of the week.
At the Oklahoma National Stockyards, compared to last week feeder steers were $2 to $5 higher and feeder heifers were $3 to $6 higher. Steer and heifer calves were mostly steady on limited comparable offerings. The USDA says demand was good to very good, especially for feeder cattle. Quality was plain to average with a few attractive. Receipts were down on the week and the year. Feeder supply included 58 percent steers and 76 percent of the offering was over 600 pounds. Medium and Large 1 feeder steers 701 to 742 pounds ranged from $129 to $145.50 and feeder steers 928 to 942 pounds brought $119 to $128.50. Medium and Large 1 feeder heifers 612 to 640 pounds brought $124 to $141 and feeder heifers 650 to 692 pounds brought $124 to $132.75.
Boxed beef closed mixed on light to moderate demand for moderate to heavy offerings. Choice closed $.02 higher at $205.46 and Select closed $1.79 lower at $96.97. The Choice/Select spread is $8.49.
Estimated cattle slaughter is 119,000 head – down 2,000 on the week and even on the year. Friday’s cattle slaughter was 109,000 head, down 10,000 on the week and down 9,000 on the year. Packers didn’t run on Saturday.
Lean hog futures ended the day higher supported by higher wholesale values during the session and broader market support. July lean hogs closed $.22 higher at $44.95 and August lean hogs closed $.07 higher at $49.27.
Cash hog prices were not reported on Monday due to technical issues at the USDA and packer submission problems. Supply and demand continue to be the driver behind the market. While there has been some good news on the demand front, the industry is looking for signs of ongoing recovery. Supplies of market-ready hogs are more than ample and processors are continually pushing larger slaughter runs. While that’s helping to keep the food supply chain moving, it’s also bringing more pork online. Packers are also still trying to work through the backlog of hogs that are still in the production system.
Butcher hog prices at the Midwest cash markets are steady at $20.
At Illinois, slaughter sow prices were steady with moderate demand for moderate offerings at $9 to $20. Barrow and gilt prices were weak with light to moderate demand for moderate to heavy offerings at $12 to $20. Boars ranged from $2 to $5.
Pork values closed lower – $2.12 lower at $64.34. Ribs, loins, hams, picnics, and bellies were lower to sharply lower. Butts closed firm.
Estimated hog slaughter is 452,000 head – down 16,000 on the week and down 31,000 on the year. Friday’s estimated kill is 176,000 head – down 296,000 on the week and 254,000 on the year. Packers didn’t run on Saturday.
