Friday, January 31, 2020

Friday Midday Livestock Market Summary - Cattle Contracts Pushing Back to Buy Time

General Comments
Cattle contracts are prepared to move higher if the Cattle Inventory report unveils bullish numbers but until then the market tips back and forth waiting for a queue. March corn is up 2 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is up $0.40. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 422.96 points and NASDAQ is down 101.13 points.
LIVE CATTLE
Buying time seems to be the goal for the live cattle market as future contracts trade in both directions while a strong undertone is present but aren't overzealous as the complex waits for Friday afternoon's Cattle Inventory report. February live cattle are up $0.02 at $121.80, April live cattle are down $0.07 at $120.12 and June live cattle are down $0.17 at $111.85. Packers are feeling a little push back from feeders as no one seems eager to pull the trigger before the report shows what cattle figures are. Earlier Friday morning, three majors and one regional called around hoping to buy more cattle with the week's going rate, indicating that packers are still needing numbers.
Boxed beef prices are lower: choice down $0.01 ($213.34) and select down $0.58 ($210.90) with a movement of 58 loads (23.05 loads of choice, 9.33 loads of select, 12.66 loads of trim and 6.24 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE
Feeder cattle markets are taking Friday with stride and encouraging the live cattle complex to push markets higher. Thursday was the last trading day for the January feeder cattle contracts so now the attention shifts to the March contract which is performing with ease. March feeders are up $0.57 at $136.25, April feeders are up $0.72 at $137.85 and May feeders are up $0.72 at $140.00.
LEAN HOGS
The lean hog market has fallen tremendously, dropping to levels not seen since late August as prices have dropped over $7.00 in the last three days alone. February lean hogs are down $2.60 at $58.70, April lean hogs are down $3.00 at $62.82 and May lean hogs are down $1.77 at $70.55. Nearby contracts are taking the brunt of the market's fall, while deferred contracts are lower but nothing near the same magnitude. DTN Lead Analyst Todd Hultman often says, "markets are people and people are emotional," which perfectly describes the market volatility in the lean hog sector currently.
The projected lean hog index for 1/29/2020 is up $0.38 at $62.78 and the actual for 1/28/2020 was printed at $62.40, up $0.66. Hog prices are lower on the National Direct Morning Hog Report, down $1.67 with a weighted average of $52.53, ranging from $48.00 to $55.94 on 7,795 head sold and five-day rolling average of $53.80. Pork cutouts totaled 190.16 loads with 170.76 loads of pork cuts and 19.41 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $0.08, $70.82.

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