GENERAL COMMENTS:
It was another brutal day for the cattle complex as the market remains on edge, knowing that Agriculture Secretary Rollins is meeting with Mexico's agricultural minister. Cash cattle prices traded $2.00 lower in both the North and the South. December corn is down 4 3/4 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is up $1.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 472.51 points and the NASDAQ is up 263.07 points.
From Friday to Friday, livestock futures scored the following changes: October live cattle down $6.50, December live cattle down $7.90; October feeder cattle down $17.65, November feeder cattle down $19.50; December lean hogs down $0.47, February lean hogs down $0.48; December corn up $0.01, March corn remained steady.
LIVE CATTLE:
It was a rough week for the live cattle complex, as the market battled one headline after another. First, the market sank upon hearing that President Trump wanted to lower beef prices and proposed importing more beef into the U.S. from Argentina. Then on Friday, the market plummeted again upon hearing that U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins was meeting with Mexico's agricultural minister, as Mexico obviously wants the border to reopen as soon as possible. In past statements, Rollins has indicated that the border isn't going to reopen any time soon and that, before it can, New World screwworm needs to be significantly further away from the border than it currently is. Rollins has not issued a statement regarding their meeting yet.
December live cattle closed $7.25 lower at $233.92, February live cattle closed $7.25 lower at $233.42 and April live cattle closed $7.25 lower at $232.75. At the time of this writing, only a handful of cattle have traded, but so far Northern dressed deals have been marked at $370 and Southern live cattle have been marked at $238, both of which is $2.00 lower than last week's weighted average.
Friday's slaughter is estimated at 110,000 head, 18,000 head more than a week ago and 2,000 head less than a year ago. Saturday's slaughter is projected to be around 17,000 head. The week's total slaughter is estimated at 573,000 head, 6,000 head more than a week ago and 52,000 head less than a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed higher: choice up $2.62 ($375.76) and select up $3.23 ($357.97) with a movement of 133 loads (101.45 loads of choice, 11.08 loads of select, 9.55 loads of trim and 11.39 loads of ground beef).
MONDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Lower. With the board's weakness, packers will likely try to use the market's technical uncertainty as a way to weaken the cash market.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex was especially shaken to know about the meeting with Mexico today, which led to the market's limit lower close. November feeders closed $9.25 lower at $352.20, January feeders closed $9.25 lower at $348.17 and March feeders closed $9.25 lower at $345.05. The Oklahoma Weekly Cattle Auction Summary shared that compared to last week, feeder steers traded $10.00 to $15.00 lower and feeder heifers sold $5.00 to $10.00 lower. Steer calves sold $5.00 to $15.00 higher, and heifer calves sold unevenly steady. Slaughter cows sold steady to $3.00 lower, and slaughter bulls traded $3.00 lower. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 53%. The CME feeder cattle index 10/23/2025: down $3.54, $367.08.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex closed mostly higher, although a couple of the nearby contracts closed lower as the concern about consumer demand lingers. December lean hogs closed $0.12 higher at $81.90, February lean hogs closed $0.05 higher at $84.30 and April lean hogs closed $0.02 lower at $88.95. Traders will be closely monitoring demand next week, as that will likely be the deciding factor if the contracts can begin to muster support and trade higher. Hog prices closed lower on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, down $0.82 with a weighted average price of $85.56 on 1,515 head. Pork cutouts totaled 426.21 loads with 378.88 loads of pork cuts and 47.33 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $3.03, $102.74. Friday's slaughter is estimated at 455,000 head, 12,000 head more than a week ago and 27,000 head less than a year ago. Saturday's slaughter is projected to be around 181,000 head. The CME lean hog index 10/22/2025: down $0.55, $93.63.
MONDAY'S HOG CALL: Lower. Packers rarely buy aggressively in the cash market on Mondays.
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