Market News
Cattle futures higher to start the week
At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, live and feeder cattle futures closed higher, supported by technical buying. October live cattle closed $1.35 higher at $106.87 and December live cattle closed $1.80 higher at $111.70. September feeder cattle closed $1.50 higher at $141.50 and October feeder cattle closed $2.02 higher at $142.60.
Direct cash cattle trade started the week on a quiet note. Bids and asking prices have yet to be established. Showlists this week are somewhat lower in Kansas, lower in Texas, Nebraska, and Colorado. Significant trade volume could wait until sometime Tuesday or later to develop.
At midsession, at the Oklahoma National Stockyards, compared to two weeks ago, feeder steers and heifers were $3 to $8 higher. The USDA says demand has been good. Weaned calves were mostly steady, however most of the un-weaned calves sold at a sharp discount. Quality is average to attractive. Receipts were up on the week and the year. Feeder supply included 50 percent steers and 54 percent of the offering was over 600 pounds. Medium and Large 1 feeder steers 563 to 588 pounds brought $142 to $153 and feeder steers 763 pounds brought $148.85. Medium and Large 1 feeder heifers 520 to 548 pounds brought $121 to $130 and feeder heifers 760 to 798 pounds brought $128.50 to $136.
Boxed beef closed mixed on moderate demand for moderate to heavy offerings. Choice is $2.68 lower at $217.21 and Select is $.66 higher at $207.76. Estimated cattle slaughter is 120,000 head – up 1,000 on the year.
Lean hog futures closed lower on profit-taking giving back some of the recent gains even with confirmation that China, Japan, and South Korea have stopped importing pork from Germany. October lean hogs closed $1.95 lower at $64.62 and December lean hogs closed $2.42 lower at 63.57.
Cash hogs closed mostly, sharply higher with solid negotiated purchases. Packers procurement efforts have been aggressive to stay the week. The industry is expecting an uptick in demand for US pork, with expectations that China will turn to the US since it’s banned imports from Germany. That helps to provide at least some price support. However, the availability of market-ready hogs is more than ample, and that heavy-supply situation adds increased volatility to an already vulnerable market. Barrows and gilts at the National Daily Direct closed $4.94 higher with a base range of $45 to $64 for a weighted average of $57.84; the Iowa/Minnesota closed $11.13 higher for a weighted average of $60.91; the Western Corn Belt closed $11.28 higher for a weighted average of $60.91; the Eastern Corn Belt closed $.12 higher with a weighted average of $55.69.
Butcher hog prices at the Midwest cash markets are steady at $30. At Illinois, slaughter sow prices were steady with good demand for heavy offerings at $11 to $23. Barrow and gilt prices were $3 to $6 higher with good demand for moderate to heavy offerings at $29 to $35. Boars ranged from $1 to $3.
Pork values closed sharply lower, down $1.54 at $79.71. Hams and loins were both sharply lower. Butts were weak. Picnics were firm and bellies and ribs were higher. Estimated hog slaughter is 486,000 head – down 4,000 on the year. Saturday’s hog slaughter has been revised to 403,000 head.
