GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex closed mixed, with the cattle contracts finding some mild support, while the lean hog complex faced some pushback in its nearby contracts. New showlists are higher in Texas and Kansas, but mostly steady in Nebraska/Colorado. March corn is down 1 1/2 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is down $5.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 20.20 points and the NASDAQ is up 207.46 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
All in all, it was a quiet, peaceful Monday for the live cattle complex as the contracts closed slightly higher as traders desire for the market to continue to scale higher, but won't want to rival resistance thresholds without first seeing what's going to develop fundamentally this week. February live cattle closed $1.55 higher at $239.30, April live cattle closed $0.95 higher at $238.20 and June live cattle closed $0.47 higher at $234.32. New showlists are higher in Texas and Kansas, but mostly steady in Nebraska/Colorado. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 107,000 head, 1,000 head less than a week ago and 11,000 head more than a year ago.
Last week, Southern live cattle traded at mostly $240 to $245, but mostly at $242 to $245, which is $3.00 to $6.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average. Northern dressed cattle traded at mostly $378, which is $1.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average. Last week's negotiated cash cattle trade totaled 62,602 head. Of that 80% (50,107 head) were committed to the market's nearby delivery option, while the remaining 20% (12,495 head) were committed to the market's deferred delivery option.
Boxed beef prices closed mixed: choice down $1.57 ($367.76) and select up $0.82 ($365.35) with a movement of 68 loads (42.18 loads of choice, 9.60 loads of select, 3.88 loads of trim and 11.92 loads of ground beef).
TUESDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Higher. Supplies of market-ready cattle are thin, which is likely going to push the market higher again this week.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex closed higher as well Monday afternoon, as the market felt safe closing slightly higher following last week's descent that pulled the complex away from resistance pressure. March feeders closed $0.02 higher at $367.45, April feeders closed $0.40 higher at $363.20 and May feeders closed $0.65 higher at $357.77. At Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, compared to last week and at their midsession point, feeder steers were trading mostly steady to $5.00 higher, with the biggest increase seen on steers weighing 700 to 800 pounds. Feeder heifers traded $5.00 to $15.00 higher. Stocker cattle and steer and heifer calves traded anywhere from $15.00 to $25.00 higher. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 70%. The CME feeder cattle index 2/6/2026: up $0.19, $374.66.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex ended the day mixed, with most of the nearby contracts closing lower while the deferred months were able to maintain a slightly stronger position. February lean hogs closed $0.27 lower at $87.10, April lean hogs closed $1.22 lower at $96.72 and June lean hogs closed $0.80 lower at $109.80. More than anything, the market's technical resistance seemed to bear too much weight for traders to manage today, even though fundamental support remains strong with pork demand pushing pork cutout values higher. Hog prices are not available on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog report as there have been no hogs traded yet. The only thing disclosed in the report is that the market's five-day rolling average now sits at $86.45. Pork cutouts totaled 321.73 loads with 283.89 loads of pork cuts and 37.83 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $2.06, $95.83. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 490,000 head, 46,000 head more than a week ago and 1,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 2/5/2026: up $0.19, $86.57.
TUESDAY'S HOG CALL: Higher. Given that no hogs traded today, packer interest should be stronger on Tuesday.
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