GENERAL COMMENTS:
It was a lackadaisical day for the livestock complex as it was mostly uneventful. Still no cash cattle trade has developed but some early packer interest could begin to arise on Wednesday. March corn is down 2 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is down $2.00. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 221.16 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex closed lower Tuesday afternoon as traders are very skeptical of overly supporting the contracts ahead of seeing what's accomplished this week in the cash cattle market. Thankfully, the market's other fundamental facets are holding strong as today's slaughter was aggressive, and although the choice cut was lower at midday, it closed higher this afternoon which is reassuring. Still no cash cattle trade has developed and bids and asking prices remain elusive at this point. February live cattle closed steady at $197.40, April live cattle closed $0.05 lower at $198.15 and June live cattle closed $0.32 lower at $192.20.
Tuesday's slaughter is estimated at 125,000 head – 1,000 head less than a week ago and 17,000 head more than a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed higher: choice up $0.51 ($333.35) and select up $3.43 ($317.57) with a movement of 118 loads (75.27 loads of choice, 18.03 loads of select, 9.46 loads of trim and 14.75 loads of ground beef).
WEDNESDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Higher. Given that beef demand is still robust, packers will likely end up paying more money for cattle again this week.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex maintained its higher position through the day's end even though the live cattle contracts closed lower. Unlike the live cattle complex that is waiting to see how fed cattle trade this week, the feeder cattle complex is simply elated by the continued strength and demand in the countryside for feeder cattle. This continues to be evident by the CME feeder cattle index's lofty price of $278.31. January feeders closed $2.25 higher at $274.10, March feeders closed $0.30 higher at $268.20 and April feeders closed $0.22 higher at $268.55. At Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma compared to last week feeder steers traded $6.00 to $12.00 higher, and feeder heifers sold $4.00 to $8.00 higher. Steer calves sold $6.00 to $12.00 higher, and heifer calves traded $10.00 to $13.00 higher. Instances up to $20.00 higher were noted on the calves that sold. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 62%. The CME feeder cattle index 1/13/2025: up $1.01, $278.31.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex again was able to round out the day higher as traders are pleased with the recent uptick in demand. February lean hogs closed $0.45 higher at $83.62, April lean hogs closed $1.20 higher at $90.50 and June lean hogs closed $1.07 higher at $103.55. It is worth noting that the spot February contract is nearing resistance at $84.00, but so long as pork cutout values continue to show consistent demand, there's a case to be made that traders could confidently conquer that threshold -- time will tell. Hog prices closed $1.00 higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, with a weighted average price of $80.14 on 4,499 head. Pork cutouts totaled 301.64 loads with 269.35 loads of pork cuts and 32.29 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.01, $90.21. Tuesday's slaughter is estimated at 477,000 head -- 10,000 head less than a week ago and 28,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 1/10/2025: up $0.33, $80.76.
WEDNESDAY'S HOG CALL: Steady. It's likely that packers will have at least one more day of active buying in the cash market this week, but prices will likely remain steady following today's $1.00 advancement.
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