GENERAL COMMENTS:
It ended up being a supportive day for the livestock complex as all three of the markets closed higher. Once again, this week traders will closely monitor consumer demand as that will play a pivotal role in the market's direction. December corn is down 4 1/2 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is down $1.00. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 273.17 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex wasn't sure if there was going to be enough support in today's market to allow its contracts to trade higher -- especially with seeing steady on-feed totals presented in Friday's Cattle on Feed report -- but thankfully traders found merit in the market's fundamentals and allowed for a higher close. December live cattle closed $0.12 higher at $189.27, February live cattle closed $0.17 higher at $190.10 and April live cattle closed $0.35 higher at $190.70. The market's underlying attitude remains bullish and somewhat eager to continue to trade higher -- but traders won't likely advance the contract without first seeing what the cash cattle market does which won't be until later in the week. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 121,000 head -- 1,000 head more than a week ago and 3,000 head less than a year ago. New showlists appear to be somewhat lower in Nebraska/Colorado, and lower in Kansas and Texas.
Last week Southern live cattle traded at mostly $190 which is $2.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average. Northern dressed cattle traded at mostly $298 which is also $2.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average. Last week's negotiated cash cattle trade totaled 98,023 head. Of that 77% (75,486 head) were committed to the nearby delivery, while the remaining 23% (22,537 head) were committed to the deferred delivery.
Boxed beef prices closed mixed: choice up $1.26 ($323.50) and select down $2.90 ($292.18) with a movement of 156 loads (60.89 loads of choice, 20.30 loads of select, 10.50 loads of trim and 63.92 loads of ground beef).
TUESDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady. With packers able to buy a sizeable volume of cattle last week, prices may be pressured to trade steady this week.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex powered through Monday's market and confidently pushed higher through the day's end. It was exciting to see the spot January contract create some distance between its closing price and the market's 100-day moving average as the market has been dancing around that threshold over the last month, not seeming confident as to which direction the market should trade. But today's higher close thankfully pushed the contracts higher and if fundamental support remains plentiful throughout the week, traders may be able to pass that threshold confidently for the near term. November feeders closed $0.62 higher at $249.20, January feeders closed $1.32 higher at $246.95 and March feeders closed $1.57 higher at $245.55. At Joplin Regional Stockyards in Carthage, Missouri, compared to last week and at their mid-session point, feeder steers were trading steady to $4.00 higher and feeder heifers were trading steady to $3.00 lower. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 48%. The CME feeder cattle index 10/25/2024: up $0.28, $249.37.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex had another successful day as the contracts traded higher throughout the day thanks to continued support from consumers. It was impressive to see such significant gains in the pork cutout value this early in the week which likely means that consumers are hitting the pork section of the grocery store harder than retailers assumed they were going to. But today's ending carcass price wasn't because of a jolting rally in one single cut -- but every major cut closed higher, and the biggest day-over-day advancements were seen in the loin up $4.78, and the belly up $4.68. December lean hogs closed $0.95 higher at $80.62, February lean hogs closed $0.80 higher at $84.22 and April lean hogs closed $0.47 higher at $87.12. Hog prices are higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, up $5.29 with a weighted average price of $80.95 on 2,964 head. Pork cutouts totaled 262.93 loads with 236.06 loads of pork cuts and 26.86 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $3.01, $101.95. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 488,000 head -- steady with a week ago and 14,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 10/24/2024: up $0.23, $85.43.
TUESDAY'S HOG CALL: Higher. With packers somewhat aggressively buying hogs throughout Monday's trade, it leads one to believe that they're short bought and that prices could be higher in the days ahead especially with pork cutout values jumping higher.
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