GENERAL COMMENTS:
It was a fruitful day for the livestock complex as all three markets saw their contracts close mostly higher, the cash cattle market saw a thin movement of cattle trade in the South for steady to $1.00 higher and packers were aggressive in this afternoon's cash hog market. Asking prices in the South remain firm at $201 to $205 but are still not established in the North. March corn is up 4 1/4 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is down $3.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 703.27 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
It was another successful day for the live cattle complex as not only were the contracts able to again advance their position, but the cash cattle market was lightly tested and thankfully our assumption that prices would trade steady/somewhat higher was true! February live cattle closed $1.12 higher at $198.52, April live cattle closed $1.17 higher at $199.32 and June live cattle closed $1.25 higher at $193.45. There were only a handful of cattle sold in the South throughout the day, but cattle sold at mostly $201 which is steady compared to the weighted average last week in Kansas, but $1.00 higher compared to Texas' weighted average last week. Asking prices in the South remain firm at $201 to $205 but are still not yet established for the North.
Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 124,000 head -- 2,000 head more than a week ago and 8,000 head more than a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed mixed: choice up $1.16 ($334.14) and select down $0.67 ($318.04) with a movement of 132 loads (94.99 loads of choice, 22.48 loads of select, zero loads of trim and 14.70 loads of ground beef).
THURSDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Higher. If the South was able to push prices $1.00 higher on a Wednesday, the feedlot managers in the North will likely be able to accomplish even more later in the week as packers could become anxious as even though they were able to buy more cattle last week, they still need to be active in this week's market to avoid becoming even shorter bought.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex rallied throughout Wednesday's trade as the market was pleased to see additional support stemming from the live cattle contracts, higher trade and amid steady to $1.00 higher sales from the few fed cattle that were traded. January feeders closed $1.12 higher at $275.22, March feeders closed $1.60 higher at $269.80 and April feeders closed $1.57 higher at $270.12. The spot March contract came up against resistance pressure at $270 but ultimately elected to close below that threshold as traders weren't confident that the market possessed enough support to overtake that threshold. At the Winter Livestock Auction in La Junta, Colorado, compared to last week feeder steers sold $2.00 to $6.00 higher with instances of sharply higher prices across all weight groups. Feeder heifers traded $6.00 to $8.00 higher with sharply higher prices across all weight groups as well. The CME feeder cattle index 1/14/2025: down $0.27, $278.04.
LEAN HOGS:
It was a productive day for the lean hog complex as not only were the contracts able to close higher, but the futures complex was also well supported by a large movement in the cash hog sector and by stronger pork cutout values yet again. February lean hogs closed $0.50 lower at $83.12, April lean hogs closed $0.52 higher at $91.02 and June lean hogs closed $0.60 higher at $104.15. The carcass price was well supported as most of the major cuts posted day-over-day gains, with the loin and butt being the only two cuts that closed slightly lower. But what was potentially more eye-catching than the higher close in pork cutout values was the cash hog market's movement of 10,701 head -- which is rarely seen any more in the cash hog market. February lean hogs closed $0.50 lower at $83.12, April lean hogs closed $0.52 higher at $91.02 and June lean hogs closed $0.60 higher at $104.15. Hog prices closed higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, up $0.07 with a weighted average price of $80.21 on 10,701 head. Pork cutouts totaled 325.47 loads with 264.89 loads of pork cuts and 60.58 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.62, $90.83. Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 490,000 head – 6,000 head more than a week ago and 7,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 1/13/2025: up $0.23, $80.99.
THURSDAY'S HOG CALL: Lower. Given how aggressive packers were on Wednesday, it's likely that they're almost done buying now for the week.
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