GENERAL COMMENTS:
Overall, it was a winning day for the livestock complex as most of the futures contracts closed higher, boxed beef prices closed higher, and the cash hog market saw another big movement today. Heading into Thursday's market, be on the lookout for the morning's export report and the afternoon's Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report. May corn is down 6 1/2 cents per bushel and May soybean meal is down $1.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 132.71 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
Given that traders pushed the contracts lower earlier in the week, the complex was able to close higher Wednesday afternoon as traders were no longer up against resistance thresholds. April live cattle closed $0.70 higher at $207.07, June live cattle closed $0.70 higher at $203.02 and August live cattle closed $0.47 higher at $199.35. Still no cash cattle trade has developed and it's not likely that any will be ahead of Friday as feedlot managers are hoping to advance the market this week but will be faced with some opposition from packers as they have some supply built up around them. Asking prices are noted in the South at $212-plus but are still not known for the North.
Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 123,000 head -- 34,000 head more than a week ago and steady with a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed higher: choice up $3.11 ($338.30) and select up $2.48 ($316.53) with a movement of 140 loads (77.78 loads of choice, 13.55 loads of select, 27.28 loads of trim and 21.52 loads of ground beef).
THURSDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady to somewhat higher. It's a coin toss on whether or not packers will be able to keep the market from advancing this week. With boxed beef prices continuing to inch higher and higher, the last thing they want to be is short bought.
FEEDER CATTLE:
Following in the live cattle market's footsteps, the feeder cattle complex also closed higher as it had the necessary support. April feeders closed $1.02 higher at $285.87, May feeders closed $1.05 higher at $285.17 and August feeders closed $0.82 higher at $288.80. So long as the live cattle complex traders higher later in the week, it's also likely the feeder cattle contracts will. Currently, the market has enough fundamental support -- it just needs support from traders amid some technical hesitancy. Winter Livestock Auction in La Junta, Colorado, compared to last week feeder steers under 600 pounds sold mostly $2.00 to $4.00 higher. Feeder steers over 600 pounds sold $3.00 to $4.00 lower. Feeder heifers sold mostly $1.00 to $5.00 higher. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 67%. The CME feeder cattle index 3/25/2024: up $0.65, $286.90.
LEAN HOGS:
Wednesday left the lean hog contracts mixed as the nearby contracts were able to maintain their higher position through the day's close, but the market's deferred contracts closed slightly lower. It was surprising to see that again today the cash hog market moved more than 13,000 head after having already bought a plethora of hogs earlier this week. The big-ticket item for Thursday will not only be the day's export report but also the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs Report. April lean hogs closed $0.90 higher at $87.55, June lean hogs closed $0.30 higher at $96.55 and July lean hogs closed $0.05 higher at $97.32. Hog prices closed lower on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, down $0.46 with a weighted average price of $88.19 on 13,488 head. Pork cutouts totaled 320.78 loads with 276.77 loads of pork cuts and 44.00 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $1.90, $95.65. Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 487,000 head -- 129,000 head more than a week ago and 1,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 3/24/2024: up $0.11, $88.90. The CME lean hog index 3/25/2025: up $0.11, $88.90.
THURSDAY'S HOG CALL: Lower. Given that packers have bought more aggressively this week than they normally do, it's likely that they've fulfilled their needs for the week.
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