It's almost as if feeders are taunting packers with the famous "here-batter-batter-batter-here," baseball lingo while setting a strong tone that they fully expect fat cattle prices to be somewhat higher again this week. March corn is up 1 1/2 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is up $2.40. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 95.44 points and NASDAQ is down 16.33 points.
LIVE CATTLE
Live cattle contracts trade higher Friday morning stimulating the notion that cash cattle prices could be higher. February live cattle are up $0.42 at $127.15, April live cattle are up $0.45 at $127.75 and June live cattle are up $0.25 at $119.72. Over the last week, the live cattle contracts have kept Monday's rally within sight as the contracts hold on to the upper range of Monday's trade. Live cattle contracts are feeling some short-term resistance at $128.00, and long-term resistance at $128.50. Cash cattle trade has yet to pull the trigger. Packers did up their ante, but feeders are holding firm to their asking prices this week. Bids of $122 in Nebraska, Kansas and Texas for live cattle, and bids of $198 to $200 in Nebraska for dressed cattle. Cash cattle trade could take off at any time now.
Friday's Fed Cattle Exchange Auction listed a total of 470 head with three lots offered (2 in Texas, and 1 in Kansas). Offers were at $124 to $125, one lot in Texas was bid $124 but consignors passed on the offer. The Kansas lot was bid 124.25, but that was also passed. Seeing that cash cattle were passed on at $124 to $124.25 sends a strong message that feeders believe cash is going to even higher than that sometime Friday.
Boxed beef prices are higher: choice up $0.42 ($210.38) and choice up $0.16 ($206.84) with a movement of 97 loads (54.34 loads of choice, 16.33 loads of select, 10.69 loads of trim and 15.41 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE
It's been a very productive week for feeder cattle contracts, as Monday posted significant gains and then has steadily traded close to Monday's high. January feeder cattle contracts are up $0.30 at $147.22, March feeders are up $0.50 at $147.05 and April feeders are up $0.57 at $149.75. As Friday wraps up the first full week of trading in the New Year, both future's market enthusiasts are impressed with the markets steady progression as well as folks who sold through the sale barns this week as feeders sold steady to instances of much higher.
LEAN HOGS
Lean hog contracts aren't behind the rest of the complex but is rather instead rallying the cattle complex. February lean hogs are up $0.40 at $67.45, April lean hogs are up $0.17 at $74.65 and May lean hogs are up $0.42 at $80.90. Early Friday morning news was shared that the German Ag Minister confirmed African swine fever in Poland, which is only a short 12 miles from the German border. Officials are wary of the disease traveling and are using extra precaution.
The projected lean hog index for 1/9/2020 is down $0.20 at $59.36, and the actual index for 1/8/2020 was reported at $59.56, up $0.22. Hog prices are lower on the National Direct Morning Hog Report, down $0.38 with a weighted average of $50.48, ranging from $46.00 to $50.90 on 4,036 head sold and a five-day rolling average of $50.41. Pork cutouts totaled 168.36 loads with 143.87 loads of pork cuts and 24.49 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $0.69, $72.14.
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