GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex is trading mostly higher into Thursday's afternoon as the traders are actively participating in today's market. The cash cattle market has yet to see cattle trade and it's not unlikely that trade waits until sometime Friday to develop. March corn is down 3 1/2 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is down $2.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 397.65 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
Up, up and away goes the live cattle complex as most of the nearby contracts stretch themselves to new contract highs. The excellent demand in the boxed beef sector has given traders all the confidence they've needed to push the contracts higher yet again and it's also giving feedlots the support they needed in order to demand stronger cash prices. Bids of $154 are being offered in Texas, and bids of $248 to $249 are being offered in Nebraska. Both bids are a long way away from feedlots' asking prices as Southern feedlots wan $158 and Northern feedlots want $256. With feedlots going toe to toe with packers again this week, and demanding higher prices before they'll pull the plug and trade cattle, it's not unlikely that the week's business waits to develop until Friday sometime. February live cattle are up $1.15 at $158.95, April live cattle are up $0.77 at $162.55 and June live cattle are up $0.37 at $158.32.
Boxed beef prices are mixed: choice down $0.34 ($279.07) and select up $2.30 ($249.58) with a movement of 71 loads (44.53 loads of choice, 9.86 loads of select, 6.48 loads of trim and 9.95 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE:
Thursday has come as a breath of fresh air for the feeder cattle complex as the market warmly welcomes the onset of lower corn prices and cheering feedlots on in their quest for higher prices again this week. January feeders are up $0.42 at $183.90, March feeders are up $0.62 at $186.82 and April feeders are up $0.55 at $190.05. At this point, the market will likely close higher with the added support of both the live cattle and cash cattle markets.
LEAN HOGS:
The nearby lean hog contracts are keeping with their slightly lower chop while the deferred contracts continue to break higher. The nearby market is longing for fundamental support, while the deferred contracts can trade higher as they're banking on the promise that supplies will be thinner in 2023. Unfortunately, with packers still not showing the market much interest, it's likely that this week's cash hog market will be another dud and that packers aren't going to aggressively buy until after the New Year. February lean hogs are down $1.20 at $89.60, April lean hogs are down $0.25 at $96.32 and June lean hogs are up $0.42 at $109.30.
The projected lean hog index for Dec. 28 is up $0.05 at $80.74, and the actual index for Dec. 27 is up $2.09 at $80.69. Hog prices are lower on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, down $1.55 with a weighted average of $75.87, ranging from $69.00 to $80.00 on 6,250 head and a five-day rolling average of $77.34. Pork cutouts total 142.90 loads with 114.36 loads of pork cuts and 28.55 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $0.80, $87.87.
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