GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex is trading higher into midday Tuesday as the cattle complex is delighted to note the $4.00 advancement in last week's cash market, and the lean hog contracts have finally found some technical support. New showlists appear to be mixed, higher in Nebraska/Colorado, about steady in Kansas, and lower in Texas. March corn is down 4 1/4 cents per bushel and March soybean meal is down $2.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 40.63 points and the NASDAQ is down 69.81 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
It's been a wildly successful day thus far for the live cattle complex as the market is seeing immense support from traders, which is helping the contracts scale well over $1.00 higher into midday Tuesday. More than anything, the robust fundamental support from last week's cash cattle market, mixed with the bullish long-term trajectory, seems to have traders' full attention this morning. February live cattle are up $3.07 at $246.15, April live cattle are up $1.90 at $242.52 and June live cattle are up $1.95 at $238.10. New showlists appear to be mixed, higher in Nebraska/Colorado, about steady in Kansas, and lower in Texas.
Last week, Southern live cattle were marked at mostly $248, which is $4.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average and Northern dressed cattle traded at mostly $382, which is also $4.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average. Last week's negotiated cash cattle trade totaled 59,651 head. Of that 95% (56,657 head) were committed to the market's nearby delivery, while the remaining 5% (2,994 head) were committed to the market's deferred delivery option.
Boxed beef prices are mixed: choice up $0.86 ($366.91) and select up $0.14 ($361.37) with a movement of 62 loads (45.85 loads of choice, 5.50 loads of select, 3.48 loads of trim and 6.86 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE:
Upon noting the strength of last week's fed cash cattle trade and seeing how traders are energetically supporting the live cattle contracts, it's been an easy decision for traders to push the feeder cattle contracts higher. March feeders are up $4.15 at $370.30, April feeders are up $3.97 at $367.42 and May feeders are up $3.97 at $363.40. So long as the live cattle complex continues to trade higher through the day's close, the feeder cattle contracts will likely follow in the same direction.
LEAN HOGS:
After a tumultuous downturn over the last seven trading days, the lean hog complex has finally found some technical support as traders potentially believe that the contracts have created enough space from the contract highs scored in early February. April lean hogs are up $0.95 at $92.22, June lean hogs are up $1.35 at $105.90 and July lean hogs are up $1.55 at $107.80. Pork cutout values are a tick lower this morning, but that doesn't seem to be affecting traders at this point.
The projected lean hog index for 2/16/2026 is up $0.08 at $87.13 and the actual index for 2/13/2026 is up $0.13 at $87.06. Hog prices are unavailable on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report because of confidentiality. However, we can see that only 205 head have traded this morning and that the market's five-day rolling average now sits at $87.58. Pork cutouts total 141.07 loads with 127.40 loads of pork cuts and 13.67 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $1.43, $95.42.
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