Monday Closing Livestock Market Update

GENERAL COMMENTS

Feedlot country was typically quiet as packers busied themselves with the collection of new showlists. Ready numbers appear to be generally smaller than last week with only Nebraska yards offering more ready steers and heifers. Initial bids and asking prices were not evident. According to the closing report, the national hog base is $0.27 lower ($72-$79.50, weighted average $77.43). Thanks to late-session short-covering, corn traders were able to ignore the bearish implications of a fairly wet seven-day forecast and close prices 1-2 cents higher. The stock market closed with decent strength, with the Dow gaining 135 points and the Nasdaq advancing by 83.

LIVE CATTLE

Live cattle closed with mixed prices at the conclusion of a fairly choppy session. Monday's lackluster action would seem to underscore the likelihood that Friday's rally was nothing but a dead-cat bounce. Beef cut-outs: mixed, up $0.32 (select, $196.44) to off $0.68 (choice, $198.92) with light-to-moderate demand and moderate offerings (62 loads of choice cuts, 18 loads of select cuts, 23 loads of trimmings, 15 loads of ground beef).

TUESDAY'S CASH CATTLE CALL:

Steady to $2 lower. The cash arena is likely to remain untested on Tuesday with bids and asking prices poorly defined until Wednesday or later.

FEEDER CATTLE

For the most part, feeder issues settled moderately higher, scoring gains of 40 to 72. While the early week rally can be judged technically insignificant, contracts were nonetheless hiked by profit-taking and the premium status of the cash index. On an estimated run of 4,400 head (down from 5,059 last week and 8,693 in 2016), Oklahoma City sold feeder steers and heifers $6-$10 lower. CME cash feeder index: 08/11: $145.90, off $0.06.

LEAN HOGS

Lean futures put in a fairly quiet session, both in terms of price change and volume. Spot August expired at $84.45. When new spot October takes the point on Tuesday, the big question will concern the enormous size of the fall discount vis-a-vis cash. The carcass value closed moderately lower, checked by softer demand for processing items. Pork cut-out: $94.11, off $0.33. CME cash lean index for 08/10: $85.25, off $0.25 (DTN Projected lean index for 08/11: $84.78, off $0.47).

TUESDAY'S CASH HOG CALL:

Steady to $1 lower. Look for hog buyers to resume work in the morning with bids steady to $1 lower.