Friday Morning Livestock Market Update - Narrow Trading Volume Leaves Prices Mixed

GENERAL COMMENTS

Firm follow-through support is seen in cattle trade Friday. This overall support is helping to confirm the higher moving market activity. There is likely to be some increased trade seen late in the day in all markets. Hog markets are holding narrow losses with market stability the main goal. Corn prices are higher in light trade. Stock market futures are mixed, Dow Jones is 34 points lower while Nasdaq is up 6 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

Open: Steady to 60 cents higher. Light trade is seen early Friday morning as traders try to add even more market support into the cattle complex through the end of the week. There is likely to be some additional volume later in the day as cash markets develop, and focus on outside markets become more clear. Cash cattle markets are still generally sluggish with just a few live bids developing at $118 per cwt. The overall tone of the market is likely to remain focused on the overall move higher in futures trade and should spark increased activity through the last day of the week. Asking prices are seen at $124 live and $195 and higher dressed at this point. Open interest Thursday fell 4,974 positions (354,109). Spot February lost 3,150 positions (58,527) and April contracts gained 2,544 positions (141,541). DTN projected slaughter for Friday is 116,000 head.

FEEDER CATTLE:

Open: Steady to 50 cents higher. Narrow gains have trickled into the feeder cattle market early Friday morning with most traders focusing on the aggressive support over the last couple of days. The tone of the market remains strong, which is allowing for follow through buyer interest to move through the complex. Cash lean index for 1/16 is listed at $119.39, down 0.02. Open interest Thursday added 646 positions (53,272).

LEAN HOGS:

Open: Steady to 40 cents lower. Narrow losses have trickled into the complex. There is expected to be some additional end of the week positioning done over the near future, which could limit overall trade activity in many contracts. Cash hog trade early Friday is expected to remain steady to $1 lower. Bids are scattered through the range. Open interest Thursday added 1,654 positions (247,122). Spot month February fell 4,263 positions (33,414) and April added 4,407 positions (103,891). Cash lean index for 1/16 is $72.99, up 1.07. DTN projected slaughter for Thursday is expected to be 465,000 head. Saturday runs are expected to be seen near 148,000 head.