GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex closed mixed Wednesday afternoon as the feeder cattle complex closed higher without much fight, but the live cattle and lean hog markets faced a little more hesitancy from traders. No cash cattle trade has developed but asking prices are noted in the South at $185 and packer interest will likely increase on Thursday. December corn is up 3 1/2 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is up $2.30. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 293.47 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex closed mixed with the spot October and nearby December live cattle contracts closing slightly lower while the rest of the contracts maintained their higher tone through the day's end. It was discouraging to see boxed beef prices dip lower and especially to see choice cuts dive below $300. One would think with packers pulling back chain speeds that boxed beef prices would be inching higher as supplies slowly become tighter, but maybe consumers are feeling the pinch of our economy more than assumed. October live cattle closed $0.15 lower at $183.05, December live cattle closed $0.07 lower at $184.32, and February live cattle closed $0.07 higher at $185.50. The cash cattle market didn't see any action throughout the day as packers and feedlot managers again go toe-to-toe. Feedlot managers are hoping to see the market trade steady (which would be commendable) given that packers have cut throughput this week to lessen their immediate need of the cash market. Packer interest will likely increase on Thursday, but trade could be delayed until Friday just like it was last week. Asking prices are noted in the South at $185 but are still not established in the North.
Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 120,000 head -- 5,000 head less than a week ago and 6,000 head less than a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed lower: choice down $3.72 ($298.17) and select down $3.59 ($283.28) with a movement of 171 loads (100.72 loads of choice, 21.22 loads of select, 14.58 loads of trim and 34.50 loads of ground beef).
THURSDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady. Even though packers have reduced chain speeds this past week, it's likely that some feedlot managers will elect to roll over this week's offering to next week as opposed to selling them cheaper as front-end supplies are current.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex wasn't alarmed that some of the nearby live cattle contracts pulled back ahead of the day's end, as the entire feeder cattle market closed higher Wednesday afternoon. October feeders closed $0.22 higher at $246.02, November feeders closed $0.65 higher at $244.05 and January feeders closed $0.40 higher at $238.52. All in all, feeder cattle demand in the countryside is holding up well even as the fall run gets underway. What seems to be most concerning for buyers at this point with some regions still experiencing hot temperatures is that of unweaned calves as the nights are cool, but days are hot which can stress a calf easily and usually takes them longer to get on feed. At Hub City Livestock Auction in Aberdeen, South Dakota compared to last week steers weighing 850 to 1,049 pounds sold $3.00 to $5.00 higher with instances up to $7.00 higher on those weighing 850 to 899 pounds. The best test on heifers was on those weighing 800 to 849 pounds and those weighing 950 to 999 pounds – both of which traded steady. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 100%. The CME feeder cattle index 9/24/2024: up $0.28, $244.30.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex had ample enough support and on a regular day it's likely that the market would have closed slightly higher -- but with the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs Report set to be released Thursday afternoon, traders pulled away from the market ever so slightly throughout Wednesday's trade. October lean hogs closed $0.35 higher at $82.47, December lean hogs closed $0.07 lower at $74.90, and February lean hogs closed $0.07 lower at $78.62. No wild price swings were seen throughout the afternoon's cutout report, which hopefully means that consumers will continue to be diligent buyers throughout the remainder of the week. Hog prices closed higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, up $0.50 with a weighted average price of $77.04 on 6,823 head. Pork cutouts totaled 314.90 loads with 280.32 loads of pork cuts and 34.57 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.14, $94.10. Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 486,000 head -- 7,000 head more than a week ago and 2,000 head less than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 9/23/2024: down $0.08, $84.21.
THURSDAY'S HOG CALL: Lower. With packers now likely having secured enough supplies in the cash market for the bulk of their needs this week, it's likely that prices will trend lower on Thursday and Friday.
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