Friday Morning Livestock Market Summary - Futures Markets Expected to Stabilize Friday

GENERAL COMMENTS:

Cash cattle trade appears to be generally in the books following another round of light to moderate trade activity that developed Thursday. Trade for live cattle basis traded from $115 to $118 per cwt, although most trade was seen in the $117 per cwt range. Dressed trade in the North remained light, although prices remained steady with previous activity through the week with prices at $186 to $188 for the week. Futures trade is expected to remain light early Friday morning with the focus on market stability and squaring positions at the end of the week. The mixed activity, which developed late Thursday, is likely to draw additional buyer support into the market early in the session, although the tone of the market remains weak. 

Packer interest remains generally unchanged early Friday morning as they continue to secure aggressive processing schedules through the day. This may help to draw additional longer-term support back into the market, although most cash bids are expected to be steady to $1 per cwt lower at the end of the week. The stability in Thursday's futures trade is likely to help draw additional buyer support back to the market, although the recent pressure is still keeping prices generally mixed as traders remain cautious about the potential for fundamental support through the end of December. Daily hog runs are scheduled for 465,000 head with 215,000 head seen Saturday.

	BULL SIDE		BEAR SIDE
1)	Firm gains developed in nearby feeder cattle futures late Thursday,whichare helping create a sense of stability in the market. This is likely to draw light-to-moderate buyer support back into the cattle complex during the Friday session.	1)	Firm pressure in cash cattle and boxed beef values over the last couple of days continues to limit additional pressure through the complex. This may spark some additional underlying weakness through the rest of the month following the recent pullback in futures trade.
2)	Packer interest continues to remain strong through the week as cash markets focus on the overall longer-term demand for beef, which is likely to be strong through the end of the year.	2)	Live cattle futures remain weak following aggressive market pressure through the week. Given the upcoming holidays in a couple of weeks and concern of short-term buyer interest, the recent price ranges may hold through the end of the year.
3)	Despite the strong pressure through the week in lean hog prices, pork values have seen firmness as traders remain focused on longer-term demand needs and the ability to expand product movement in early 2018.	3)	Cash hog values have started to show additional market weakness following the recent pull back in futures prices and general lack of support in several pork primal cuts. This may allow for additional buyer interest through the complex.
4)	Buyer support developed in deferred lean hog contracts through the end of Thursday's session and is likely to spark additional buyer activity during the end of the week.	4)	The continued strength in hog numbers ready for market is likely to keep the market under pressure as the expectation to meet 2.6 million head of hogs processed a week may not be a reality due to the consistent packer schedules through the week. This could create even more pressure on cash market prices through the end of the year.