GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex is trading mostly higher into Wednesday's noon hour as the market is seeming to again turn to the market's fundamentals for direction. No cash cattle trade has developed yet, but bids could start to develop later this afternoon. July corn is down 4 cents per bushel and July soybean meal is down $5.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 14.47 points.
**USDA is experiencing some technical difficulties and no Wednesday morning reports are currently available.**
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex is trading mixed heading into Wednesday's noon hour as the nearby contracts are seeing mixed interest and the market's deferred contracts are trading fully higher. The hesitation in the market's nearby contracts stems from not knowing what this week's cash cattle market will amount to yet. Traders would likely be willing to turn the nearby contracts higher, but they're still somewhat hesitant and needing that extra boost of support. June live cattle are up $0.10 at $164.12, August live cattle are down $0.12 at $162.82 and October live cattle are steady at $166.97. The cash cattle market hasn't seen any bids develop yet, and it's likely that the week's business holds off until Thursday at this point. Some bids could surface later Wednesday afternoon, but feedlots would ideally like to get steady to higher prices again this week for their cattle, and they know that in order to do so, they'll have let time pass. Asking prices in the South are noted at $176 plus, but remain unestablished in the North.
The Fed Cattle Exchange Auction held today reported six lots (with all lots in Texas), totaling 1,194 head of cattle. One lot containing 135 head sold at $174.50. Opening prices were at $172, high bids were at $172 to $174.50, reserve prices were $174.50 to $175.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex is trading mostly higher as the market warmly welcomes the support from both the higher trade in the live cattle contracts and the continued weakness in corn prices. Yes, the May and August 2023 contracts are trading slightly lower, but that's simply because traders are keenly watching the cash cattle market and hoping it regains its steam this week. May feeders are down $0.22 at $209.20, August feeders are down $0.15 at $229.35 and September feeders are up $0.05 at $231.92.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex is now trending higher as the market nears noon Wednesday. The lean hog market's ability to keep this upward momentum will largely depend on weather or not demand remains somewhat consistent in this week's market. We know that market-ready hog supplies should decrease in the third quarter, but getting there and maintaining profitability remains the issue at hand. June lean hogs are up $0.42 at $87.50, July lean hogs are up $0.42 at $90.35 and August lean hogs are up $0.42 at $91.45.
The projected lean hog index for April 25 is up $0.11 at $71.31 and the actual index for April 24 is up $0.02 at $71.20.
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