Chicago/Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures were narrowly mixed on Friday, paring earlier steep gains on end-of-year positioning, traders said.
Stronger bids for cattle in U.S. Plains cash markets underpinned prices. But some investors took profits after most-active February futures hit an eight-month high before turning slightly lower.
Despite the recent rally, cattle futures on a continuous chart were headed for an annual decline of 12 percent.
At 10:04 a.m. CST (1604 GMT) December was up 0.300 cent at 119.000 cents per lb on short-covering ahead of its expiration later on Friday. Most-active February was down 0.550 cent to 117.400 cents.
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Beef packers were bidding for cattle in Texas and Kansas at $118 per cwt against offers from feedlots of $121 or more, suggesting deals would occur higher than last week’s range of $114-$116 per cwt, traders and analysts said.
Feeder cattle prices for January were down 0.225 cent to 131.700 cents per lb.
Feeders edged lower on profit-taking after hitting a four-month high. Feeders were on pace for an annual decline of 21 per cent, following the biggest-ever decline of 24 per cent in 2015.
Hogs headed for annual gain
Lean hogs for February were down 0.225 cent to 64.425 cents per lb. April was up 0.200 cent to 66.425 cents.
Hogs were mixed, with some nearby contracts gaining on back months as investors added to recent bull spreads. Traders were exiting short positions, with open interest in the February contract declining to the lowest levels in about 1-1/2 months.
Hogs on a continuous chart were headed for an annual gain of 7.8 per cent.
Strong hog demand from pork packers and firm wholesale pork prices have buoyed CME hog futures despite pressure from a U.S. Department of Agriculture report a week ago that showed the largest U.S. hog herd since 1943.
