GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex successfully closed higher as traders continued to push the contracts higher through the day's end. There was a thin movement of cattle noted in Kansas, but not enough traded to say that any sort of a trend was established for the week. December corn is down 3 1/2 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is down $5.10. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 147.16 points and the NASDAQ is up 45.87 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex may not have closed as vigorously as it was trading earlier in the day, but given the sheer price point at which the market is trading, any ability to close higher is a win. October live cattle closed $1.32 higher at $239.52, December live cattle closed $0.97 higher at $240.90 and February live cattle closed $0.57 higher at $241.82. The question that pops into everyone's head upon viewing the closing market reports is: What's going on with boxed beef prices? After seeing such strong beef demand here as of late, seeing weaker boxed beef prices is a bit of an oddity. But given that most retailers have bought all that they need for Labor Day already, it's expected that boxed beef prices would soften a bit for the next little while. There was a handful of cattle traded in Kansas at $242, but given how limited the volume traded was, no trend has been clearly established for the week.
Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 119,000 head, 1,000 head more than a week ago and 5,000 head less than a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed lower: choice down 1.33 ($411.84) and select down $3.05 ($387.71) with a movement of 104 loads (70.34 loads of choice, 14.31 loads of select, 13.44 loads of trim and 5.78 loads of ground beef).
THURSDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady/somewhat higher. Given the support that stems from the futures complex, there's a strong chance that prices trade steady if not a bit higher again this week.
FEEDER CATTLE:
Much like the live cattle complex, the feeder cattle contracts didn't close dollars higher, but again, seeing any sort of a higher close is a victory for the complex. September feeders closed $0.35 higher at $365.40, October feeders closed $0.42 higher at $364.20 and November feeders closed $0.70 higher at $362.52. Do note that Tuesday's opening and today's opening both saw the contracts gap slightly higher, and the CME feeder cattle index broke above $360 for the first time. At the Bassett Livestock Auction, compared to last week, the best tested group of cattle was the 850-pound steers and they traded $11.00 higher. Internet bidding was strong. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 100%. The CME feeder cattle index 8/26/2025: up $1.51, $360.68.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex continued to successfully trade higher through Wednesday's end, even without the support of stronger pork cutout values. The market has thus far accomplished a tremendous week, trading higher every day and breaking through substantial resistance barriers. October lean hogs closed $0.47 higher at $93.90, December lean hogs closed $0.57 higher at $86.50 and February lean hogs closed $0.50 higher at $88.62. On Thursday, the market could face a little push back technically as the resistance around $94.00 is strong. Hog prices closed higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, up $0.40 with a weighted average price of $108.80 on 8,845 head. Pork cutouts total 280.91 loads with 240.81 loads of pork cuts and 40.10 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $1.39, $111.66. Wednesday's slaughter is estimated at 481,000 head, 1,000 head more than a week ago and 8,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 8/26/2025: down $0.59, $106.86.
THURSDAY'S HOG CALL: Lower. At this point, packers have likely bought the vast majority of their needs for the week, and with pork cutout values slightly lower, they're not likely to buy extra hogs.
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