GENERAL COMMENTS:
Friday ended up being a fantastic day for the livestock complex, as the market finally found the support it was desiring and was able to keep the contracts trading higher through the day's end. May corn is down 5 cents per bushel, and May soybean meal is down $6.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 867.21 points, and the NASDAQ is down 488.70 points.
From Friday to Friday, livestock contracts scored the following changes: April live cattle up $4.45, June live cattle up $5.35; April feeder cattle up $10.28, May feeders cattle up $13.45; April lean hogs down $0.50, June lean hogs up $1.65; May corn down $0.04, July corn down $0.02.
LIVE CATTLE:
The week may have started out choppy for the live cattle complex, but low and behold, by Friday's end, the market closed substantially higher thanks to increased fundamental support from the cash sector and a slight improvement in boxed beef prices. April live cattle closed $3.40 higher at $238.50, June live cattle closed $3.97 higher at $238.77, and August live cattle closed $3.65 higher at $236.05. Friday's higher close pushed the spot June contract past its 40-day moving average and up to the market's resistance that it hasn't successfully traded over since last October.
On Thursday, some light dressed cattle sales were noted in the North at $372, which is steady with last week's weighted average. At the time of this writing, bids are on the table, but no cash cattle sales have been reported in the South. Bids remain unaccepted at $235, as feedlot managers are firm in their asking price of $238 to $240.
Friday's slaughter is estimated at 92,000 head -- 16,000 head more than a week ago and 15,000 head less than a year ago. Saturday's slaughter is projected to be around 16,000 head. The week's total slaughter is estimated at 520,000 head -- 17,000 head more than a week ago and 88,000 head less than a year ago.
Boxed beef prices closed mixed: choice up $3.12 ($392.97) and select down $1.79 ($389.87) with a movement of 107 loads (60.64 loads of choice, 8.39 loads of select, 25.95 loads of trim and 11.94 loads of ground beef).
MONDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Steady. Before we can articulate what next week's trend may be, we need to see where the market lands this week.
FEEDER CATTLE:
Upon seeing ample fundamental and technical support arise in the cattle sector, the feeder cattle contracts jumped with joy and successfully rounded out the day anywhere from $4 to $8 stronger. April feeders closed $6.37 higher at $361.45, May feeders closed $8.07 higher at $359.82, and August feeders closed $7.42 higher at $357.80. With boxed beef prices seeing a slight increase at the end of the week and fed cash cattle prices also holding steady, the feeder cattle complex simply had all the support it wanted, as demand in the countryside was also steady to somewhat stronger for calves this week. The Weekly Oklahoma Cattle Auction Summary shared that compared to last week, feeder steers traded steady to $6 higher, and feeder heifers traded steady to $4 lower. Steer calves sold $10 to $15 higher, and heifer calves sold $2 to $7 stronger. Slaughter cows sold $1 to $2 higher, and slaughter bulls traded $3 stronger. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 69%. The CME feeder cattle index 3/26/2026: down $0.26, $362.98.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex also ran vigorously through the week's end, as the market had more than enough support to justify doing so. Between Thursday's quarterly USDA Hogs and Pigs report and the uptick in pork demand Friday afternoon, support was ample. April lean hogs closed $0.05 lower at $90.77, June lean hogs closed $1.82 higher at $106.12, and July lean hogs closed $2.12 higher at $108.82. Hog prices closed lower on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, down $0.37 with a weighted average price of $90.52 on 2,038 head. Pork cutouts totaled 338.53 loads with 300.96 loads of pork cuts and 37.58 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $1.21, $96.56. Friday's slaughter is estimated at 490,000 head -- 23,000 head more than a week and year ago. And Saturday's slaughter is projected to be around 58,000 head. The CME lean hog index 3/25/2026: down $0.19, $91.46.
MONDAY'S HOG CALL: Steady. Packers rarely are aggressive enough in the cash market on Mondays to drive the prices higher.
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