Friday Morning Livestock Market Update - Traders Wait for Cash Direction

GENERAL COMMENTS:

Traders were not able to find any specific fundamental reason to support cattle futures. Cash has not traded sufficiently to provide solid direction for the week. Early strength on Thursday waned as traders could not find support. Fundamentally, cattle supplies are tight, but that is old news. If demand slows, it will not make any difference that supplies are tight. The slaughter pace is lower, but cattle weights are higher. This results in a steady beef supply despite the lower pace. Boxed beef prices have decreased since early in the week. On Thursday, choice boxed beef declined $2.40, with select down $3.71.

Hogs closed moderately higher, except for the June and July contracts. There was no solid fundamental reason for futures to move higher, as packers remained unaggressive in the cash market. The National Daily Direct Afternoon Hog report was down $1.00. It is uncertain whether packers will need more hogs to finish out the week. It was expected that they would increase slaughter to make up for the holiday-shortened week, but that does not seem to be the case. Pork cutout values were up $0.76, but that will have a limited positive impact on the market today. Weekly hog weights averaged 291.1 pounds.

	BULL SIDE		BEAR SIDE
1)	If the cash cattle trade is no worse than steady, futures are likely to increase as there is a significant discount to cash.	1)	Cattle futures have had difficulty holding gains as traders are concerned about the ongoing beef demand.
2)	There remains a strong demand for feeder cattle, with feedlots paying a premium for animals to put on feed.	2)	Packers may remain unaggressive in the cash market today, which may result in lower cash cattle trade.
3)	Hog futures remain oversold and should see further short covering to correct the market.	3)	Other than hog futures correcting from being oversold, there is little else for traders to turn bullish.
4)	Weekly hog weights declined by 0.2 pounds to an average of 291.1 pounds. Further decline is expected to move through the summer.	4)	Weekly hog weights are 3.1 pounds higher than a year ago. There are sufficient hogs and plenty of pork available for demand.

Thursday Closing Livestock Market Update - Traders Send Cattle Contracts Lower Upon Not Seeing Enough Fundamental Support

GENERAL COMMENTS:

The livestock complex ended the day mixed, with the cattle contracts closing weaker, but the lean hog contracts were met with mild trader support. No cash cattle trade developed throughout the day. July corn is up 3 1/4 cents per bushel and July soybean meal is up $3.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 24.69 points and the NASDAQ is up 242.74 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

The live cattle complex drifted lower throughout the day as traders didn't see enough fundamental support in the market to justify pushing the contracts any higher. June live cattle closed $1.67 lower at $249.75, August live cattle closed $1.50 lower at $241.00 and October live cattle closed $1.40 lower at $232.57. Bids of $253 were offered throughout the day in Kansas and Nebraska, but no cattle traded. And at this point, asking prices remain elusive. 

Thursday's slaughter is estimated at 110,000 head -- 1,000 head more than a week ago and 11,000 head less than a year ago.

Boxed beef prices closed lower: choice down $2.40 ($392.32) and select down $3.71 ($385.58) with a movement of 125 loads (89.25 loads of choice, 12.90 loads of select, 8.44 loads of trim and 14.29 loads of ground beef).

FRIDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady. There's a chance that packers could be short bought and that prices may trade higher later this week, but with boxed beef prices closing lower, packers will likely try to use that as leverage and work the cash market lower.

FEEDER CATTLE:

Without the help or support of the live cattle contracts, the feeder cattle contracts closed lower without another option in hand. August feeders closed $1.60 lower at $353.02, September feeders closed $1.55 lower at $350.25 and October feeders closed $1.47 lower at $347.00. At the Winter Livestock Auction in Pratt, Kansas, compared to last week, feeder steers weighing 875 to 975 pounds sold unevenly steady, however load lots sold up to $5.00 higher. Steers weighing 775 to 875 pounds traded up to $10.00 higher. Feeder heifers weighing 700 to 950 pounds traded $9.00 to $12.00 higher. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 96%. The CME feeder cattle index 5/27/2026: up $2.37, $369.63.

LEAN HOGS:

The lean hog complex was able to end the day mostly higher on the June 2026 contract closing the day lower. Traders were pleased to see pork cutout values higher at midday, but unfortunately, the afternoon's carcass price did close a tick lower. June lean hogs closed $0.62 lower at $96.97, July lean hogs closed steady at $102.12 and August lean hogs closed $0.07 higher at $100.92. Hog prices closed lower on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog report, down $1.00 with a weighted average price of $93.64 on 2,232 head. Thursday's slaughter is estimated at 476,000 head -- 8,000 head less than a week ago and steady with a year ago. Pork cutouts totaled 335.54 loads with 288.22 loads of pork cuts and 47.31 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.76, $99.11. The CME lean hog index 5/26/2026: down $0.12, $90.58.

FRIDAY'S HOG CALL: Lower. Packers have likely secured the vast majority of their cash needs for the week.

Thursday Midday Livestock Market Update - Lackadaisical Tones Take Over Complex

GENERAL COMMENTS:

Thus far it's been a quiet and mundane day for the livestock complex without much developing. There's a single cash bid on the table in Kansas at $253; otherwise no cash business has developed. July corn is up 3 3/4 cents per bushel and July soybean meal is up $3.90. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 36.52 points and NASDAQ is up 206.26 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

With boxed beef prices lower and still no cash cattle trade developing, the live cattle futures are trading slightly lower into Thursday's noon hour. June live cattle are down $0.92 at $250.50, August live cattle are down $0.27 at $242.22 and October live cattle are down $0.27 at $233.70. A single bid is on the table in Kansas at $253, but otherwise the cash market sits idle with no business yet. With it being a holiday-shortened week, export data will be released on Friday.

Boxed beef prices are lower: choice down $2.23 ($392.49) and select down $1.96 ($387.33) with a movement of 57 loads (44.54 loads of choice, 5.37 loads of select, zero loads of trim and 6.79 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

The feeder cattle complex is also trading mostly lower, other than the November 2026 and January 2027 contracts. But without the support of the live cattle contracts, the feeder cattle complex isn't willing to boldly step out and trade higher by itself. August feeders are down $0.22 at $354.40, September feeders are down $0.10 at $351.70 and October feeders are down $0.12 at $348.35.

LEAN HOGS:

The lean hog contracts are lower as traders aren't willing to advance the contracts following Wednesday's modest move higher. It's unfortunate because Thursday there's signs of stronger consumer support with the midday pork cutout values up over $2.00. But traders are leery of being too ambitious. June lean hogs are down $0.55 at $97.05, July lean hogs are down $0.07 at $102.07 and August lean hogs are down $0.10 at $100.75.

The projected CME Lean Hog Index for 5/27/2026 is up $0.34 at $90.92 and the actual index for 5/26/2026 is down $0.12 at $90.58. Hog prices are lower on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, down $0.03 with a weighted average price of $94.47, ranging from $91.50 to $95.00 on 1,207 head and a five-day rolling average of $94.30. Pork cutouts total 231.27 loads with 192.25 loads of pork cuts and 39.02 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $2.37, $100.72.

Thursday Morning Livestock Market Update - Futures Expected to Show Further Gains

GENERAL COMMENTS:

There was no specific news that caused the strength in cattle futures on Wednesday. Some light cash trade took place at even money with last week, which may have provided some support due to the discount the market carries to cash. A steady or higher cash trade would provide traders with the confidence to eliminate some of the futures discount. Boxed beef prices were mixed, with choice up $1.82 and select down 1.01. Feeder cattle futures outpaced live cattle as traders turned optimistic. Even with the strong gains, the August and September contracts failed to close the chart gaps that remained above the market. Those are likely to be closed today as follow-through buying is expected.

Hog futures finally showed some hope that the market may have finally found support. Supportive fundamentals were lacking, but technical trade seems to have provided support. Futures have been oversold and needed to be corrected. The National Dairy Direct Afternoon Hog report showed no price change from the previous day, with the weighted average price at $94.64. There was a good volume of hogs traded in the negotiated market, but packers will likely need to be aggressive today to procure the hogs they need.

	BULL SIDE		BEAR SIDE
1)	Steady or higher cash trade this week should result in more of the discount currently in cattle futures being eliminated.	1)	Packers may not be aggressive this week due to one less day of slaughter. Cash cattle could see steady prices at best.
2)	The drought in the Southeast has resulted in an increase in cattle liquidation, with some complete herds being dispersed. This will further reduce the cattle numbers.	2)	The retail market may be restocked, resulting in mixed or lower boxed beef prices.
3)	Hog futures are oversold, and short covering may continue today. A correction in the market usually lasts 2 to 3 days.	3)	The bounce in hog futures on Wednesday did not have solid fundamental support and may be short-lived.
4)	Traders were not willing to press the market lower. There is anticipation that demand should increase.	4)	Once the oversold status of hog futures is corrected, the market may have difficulty maintaining price strength.