GENERAL COMMENTS:
Heading into Friday afternoon, the cash cattle market is still sitting on pins and needles as the market has yet to trade cattle. Asking prices are noted in the South at $183-plus and the North at $290-plus. March corn is down 1 1/2 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is up $2.20.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 90.42 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
Live cattle contracts are continuing to forage higher as the market anxiously waits to see what develops in this week's cash market. It's almost noon Friday and still no cash cattle have traded. Asking prices are noted in the South at $183-plus and the North at $290-plus, so packers have some decisions to make. They obviously don't want to pay up and see the cash market gain more leverage and then personally (packers) lose leverage. At the same time, being short-bought and having to be twice as aggressive in next week's market could potentially be even more costly. Time will tell how this week's market is going to shake out. February live cattle are up $0.65 at $184.42, April live cattle are up $0.07 at $186.65 and June live cattle are up $0.17 at $183.90.
Boxed beef prices are lower: Choice down $0.87 ($294.14) and select down $1.34 ($282.78) with a movement of 76 loads (38.68 loads of choice, 7.46 loads of select, 20.91 loads of trim and 8.65 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex is trading mixed as the market's spot and nearby contracts trade higher but deferred months are trading lower. March feeders are up $0.95 at $247.80, April feeders are up $0.32 at $252.25 and May feeders are down $0.30 at $256. The spot and nearby contracts are likely trading higher as live cattle contracts lend support by trading higher as well as the corn market continuing to drift slightly lower. Not to mention, the cash cattle market still hasn't seen any trade develop likely meaning that packers will have to be aggressive if they wantt to purchase any cash cattle this week.
LEAN HOGS:
After trading lower throughout the early part of the week, the lean hog complex has finally come into some support as all of its contracts are currently trading higher. February lean hogs are up $0.60 at $73.90, April lean hogs are up $1.45 at $81.80 and June lean hogs are up $0.87 at $95.75. Pork cutout values are higher again this morning with the butt and belly the biggest driving forces as to why the carcass prices are higher.
The projected lean hog index for Feb. is down $0.40 at $73.60 and the actual index for Feb. 7 is down $0.02 at $74.00. Hog prices are higher on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, up $0.72 with a weighted average price of $65.32, ranging from $60 to $68.50 on 429 head and a five-day rolling average of $64.71. Pork cutouts total 213.14 loads with 198.05 loads of pork cuts and 15.09 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: Up $0.12, $86.48.
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