GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock contracts closed mostly lower Monday afternoon as traders were hesitant to overly support the contracts ahead of seeing what develops fundamentally this week. New showlists appear to be mixed, higher in Kansas, about steady in Nebraska/Colorado, but lower in Texas. March corn is down 2 3/4 cents per bushel and January soybean meal is down $4.10. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 427.09 points and the NASDAQ is down 89.77 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
Boxed beef prices may have traded higher throughout the day, but traders still weren't willing to advance the complex ahead of seeing what shakes out fundamentally this week. December live cattle closed $1.37 lower at $214.20, February live cattle closed $1.92 lower at $215.92 and April live cattle closed $2.00 lower at $217.55. The market has plenty of room to trade higher before it runs into immediate resistance pressure, which will likely come around the 100-day moving average at $231.24. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 115,000 head, 5,000 head less than a week ago and 1,000 head less than a year ago. New showlists appear to be mixed, higher in Kansas, about steady in Nebraska/Colorado, but lower in Texas.
Last week Northern dressed cattle traded at mostly $330, which is $13.00 lower than the previous week's weighted average, and Southern live cattle traded at mostly $220, which is $2.00 to $4.00 lower than the previous week's weighted average. Last week's negotiated cash cattle trade totaled 55,928 head. Of that 90% (50,228 head) were committed to the market's nearby delivery, while the remaining 10% (5,700 head) were committed to the market's deferred delivery option.
Boxed beef prices are higher: choice up $2.07 ($368.89) and select up $6.83 ($357.88) with a movement of 93 loads (68.81 loads of choice, 11.34 loads of select, 4.79 loads of trim and 8.44 loads of ground beef).
TUESDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady/somewhat lower. Packers were able to buy a sizeable volume last week and commit 90% of them to the nearby delivery option, which likely means that they won't have to be as aggressive in this week's market.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex closed mixed, with the market's nearby contracts ending slightly lower, but the furthest deferred months closed higher. The feeder cattle complex again closely followed the direction of the live cattle complex, which was lower through Monday's end. It was positive to see that feeder cattle prices in the countryside were higher, as they should be given the severe pressure the market has been under the last month, and given that the marketplace still sits with historically low supplies in the countryside. January feeders closed $2.90 lower at $321.07, March feeders closed $2.32 lower at $315.52 and April feeders closed $1.77 lower at $314.85. At Joplin Regional Stockyards in Carthage, Missouri, compared to last week and at their midpoint, feeder steers and heifers were selling $5.00 to $20.00 higher. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 56%. The CME feeder cattle index 11/28/2025: up $0.94, $319.70.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex closed lower as traders pulled back the reins ahead of Monday's close. Last week's cash hog trade was minimal, so traders will hope that packer demand will increase, and consumer demand as well, in terms of pork cutout values. December lean hogs closed $0.37 lower at $80.22, February lean hogs closed $0.70 lower at $80.30 and April lean hogs closed $0.62 lower at $84.27. Hog prices on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report averaged $71.68 (down $0.41) on 1,941 head. Pork cutouts total 230.36 loads with 192.54 loads of pork cuts and 37.82 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.57, $94.79. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 492,000 head, 3,000 head less than a week ago and 7,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 11/26/2025: down $0.35, $81.92.
TUESDAY'S HOG CALL: Higher. With last week's trade so minimal, packers will likely need to be more aggressive this week.
No comments:
Post a Comment