GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex closed mixed, with the cattle contracts finding mild support ahead of the day's end, while the lean hog complex closed mixed. New showlists appear to be lower in all major feeding states. May corn is down 2 3/4 cents per bushel and May soybean meal is down $7.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 73.14 points and the NASDAQ is up 80.65 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex found some mild support ahead of Monday's close, as traders seemed to believe that the market had endured enough technical pressure in recent days. April live cattle closed $0.87 higher at $233.10, June live cattle closed $0.50 higher at $229.65 and August live cattle closed $0.37 higher at $228.17. I think it's worth noting that the market closed merely steady; it's the contract's 100-day moving average, indicating that traders aren't convinced one way or another on which way the market could go next. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 102,000 head, 4,000 head less than a week ago and 2,000 head less than a year ago. New showlists appear to be lower in all major feeding states.
Last week, Southern live cattle traded at mostly $244, which is $5.00 lower than the previous week's weighted average. Northern dressed cattle traded at mostly $382 to $383, which is $5.00 to $6.00 lower than the previous week's weighted average.
Boxed beef prices closed higher: choice up $1.50 ($381.34) and select up $3.90 ($378.21) with a movement of 73 loads (52.45 loads of choice, 5.79 loads of select, 4.88 loads of trim and 9.67 loads of ground beef).
TUESDAY'S CATTLE CALL: Lower. With the futures complex uncertain at this time, the fed cash cattle market could likely trade steady/somewhat lower.
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex was also able to mildly improve its position ahead of the day's close. March feeders closed $1.85 higher at $357.27, April feeders closed $2.12 higher at $353.32 and May feeders closed $2.27 higher at $349.47. At Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, compared to last week and at their midsession point, compared to last week feeder steers were trading $2.00 to $8.00 lower, and feeder heifers were trading $4.00 to $10.00 lower. Steer calves were selling $5.00 to $15.00 lower, and heifer calves were trading $10.00 to $20.00 lower. Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 75%. The CME feeder cattle index 2/27/2026: down $0.97, $371.82.
LEAN HOGS:
The lean hog complex ended the day mixed, with its nearby contracts closing slightly lower while the deferred contracts maintained a slightly higher position. More than anything, the looming technical resistance simply seems to be too much for traders to bear at this point. April lean hogs closed $0.15 lower at $95.57, June lean hogs closed $0.07 lower at $109.47 and July lean hogs closed $0.07 lower at $111.60. Hog prices are higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, up $1.49 with a weighted average price of $91.87 on 5,355 head. Pork cutouts totaled 268.89 loads with 223.81 loads of pork cuts and 45.09 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.73, $98.50. Monday's slaughter is estimated at 482,000 head, 5,000 head more than a week ago and 1,000 head less than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 2/26/2026: up $0.32, $89.44.
TUESDAY'S HOG CALL: Steady to somewhat higher. Packers will likely show modest interest in Tuesday's market.
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