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DTN Midday Livestock Comments 03/06 11:10
Cattle Dip Lower Amid Weaker Cash Sales and Technical Pressure
Some light cash cattle trade has developed in the North at $380, which is $3
lower than last week's weighted average, and no Southern trade has developed
just yet.
ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst
GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock contracts continue to trade mixed as the cattle contracts wane
lower while the hog contracts are trading higher. Some light cash cattle trade
has been noted in the North at $380, which is $3 lower than last week's
weighted average. May corn is up 3 1/4 cents per bushel and May soybean meal is
up $6.30. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 531.90 points and NASDAQ is
down 182.29 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex started the day off trading lower, and upon seeing
some fed cash cattle trade develop at lower prices, it's likely that the market
will keep with this trend through the day's close. April live cattle are down
$0.85 at $237.67, June live cattle are down $1.25 at $234.02 and August live
cattle are down $1.27 at $232.12. Today's weakness seems to be stemming from a
number of different areas. Technically speaking, the market's 40-day moving
average seems to pose as too much of a technical barrier for traders to
challenge at this point. From a fundamental sense, seeing prices trade $3 lower
in the North doesn't send the market warm and fuzzy feelings either. Some light
trade has begun to develop in the North at $380, which is $3 lower than last
week's weighted average. Bids are currently on the table in the South, but no
Southern trade has been noted yet. Packer interest will continue throughout the
day as more cattle need to trade in both regions.
Box beef prices are mixed: choice up $0.18 ($387.07) and select down $0.54
($380.07) with a movement of 45 loads (33.29 loads of choice, 2.74 loads of
select, 3.44 loads of trim and 5.71 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE:
The feeder cattle complex is also trading lower as the market is currently
seeing its contracts fall anywhere from $1 to $3 lower. More than anything, the
weakness seen in the live cattle complex amid a lower trade in the fed cash
cattle market doesn't give the feeder cattle complex much support to rally
around. March feeders are down $1.67 at $360.92, April feeders are down $2.37
at $356.62 and May feeders are down $2.97 at $352.55. It's likely that the
complex will keep with a lower trend through the day's end.
LEAN HOGS:
The cattle contracts may be trading slightly lower, but the lean hog complex
is keeping with a slightly higher trend as traders remain committed to keeping
a sideways/somewhat higher trend in the hog sector. Today's support largely
gets attributed to trades as the market's fundamentals aren't helping drive the
ship higher. April lean hogs are up $0.72 at $96.40, June lean hogs are up
$0.57 at $110.52 and July lean hogs are up $0.67 at $112.77. Hog prices average
$90.33 on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, ranging from $90.00 to $91.00 on
1,034 head. Pork cutouts total 137.41 loads with 121.85 loads of pork cuts and
15.56 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $0.44, $98.78. The projected lean
hog index for 3/5/2026 is up $0.19 at $90.74 and the actual index for 3/4/2026
is up $0.37 at $90.55.
ShayLe Stewart can be reached at shayle.stewart@dtn.com
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