Chicago | Reuters—Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle futures rose on Tuesday with beef demand increasing ahead of the approaching Labor Day holiday and as corn futures dipped following the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s weekly crop progress and condition report.
Meanwhile, lean hog futures fell on seasonal price pressure.
CME most-active October live cattle LCV24 closed up 0.725 cent at 180.750 cents per pound. Most-active October feeder cattle FCV24 finished 2.200 cents higher at 239.925 cents per pound.
Cattle futures were supported by stronger boxed beef prices, said Austin Schroeder, analyst with Brugler Marketing.
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As the harvest in southern Alberta presses on, a broker said that is one of the factors pulling feed prices lower in the region. Darcy Haley, vice-president of Ag Value Brokers in Lethbridge, added that lower cattle numbers in feedlots, plentiful amounts of grass for cattle to graze and a lacklustre export market also weighed on feed prices.
“There’s some retail demand trying to come in ahead of the Labor Day holiday,” said Schroeder, referring to the U.S. holiday commonly celebrated by grilling outside.
He noted that while rising corn futures had pressured feeder cattle prices yesterday, Tuesday’s lower corn prices supported them.
Corn futures fell on Tuesday after the USDA’s weekly crop progress and condition report, released on Monday after the close of the session, showed the condition of the nation’s corn was better than trade expectations.
The previous day, a rally in the Chicago corn futures market Cv1 had pressured cattle futures as corn is a key component of livestock feed.
Meanwhile lean hog futures fell on changes in seasonal demand, said Schroeder.
“Typically we post that seasonal high some time in summer and start to drop into the fall,” he said.
“I think we’re facing a little bit of seasonal pressure.”
Traders have rolled positions out of the August live hog contract LHQ24 as the contract nears its expiration.
CME October lean hog futures LHV24 ended down 1.476 cents at 72.850 cents per pound.
