Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures fell more than two per cent on Friday on long liquidation and slower-than-expected export demand for U.S. pork supplies, analysts and traders said. Traders have been anticipating a jump in U.S. pork exports this year as African swine fever, a deadly hog disease, ravages China’s […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs slide on fund liquidation

U.S. livestock: Feeder cattle futures dip to contract lows
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. feeder cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) dipped to new contract lows on Thursday as a rally in Chicago Board of Trade corn futures this week continued to signal rising feed costs and U.S. beef demand remains sluggish. Cattle futures also faced headwinds from U.S. Department of Agriculture […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs up third straight session
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures closed higher on Friday for a third straight session on expectations that an outbreak of African swine fever in China’s hog herd would prompt the Asian country to import more pork, traders said. Traders were still digesting Thursday’s export sales report from the U.S. […] Read more

U.S. feedlots draw more cattle than expected in May
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Ranchers in May drove more cattle into U.S. feedlots than anticipated compared with the same period a year ago, said analysts after Friday’s U.S. Department of Agriculture monthly Cattle on Feed report. The data also showed the June 1 feedlot cattle supply climbed 4.1 per cent from a year earlier — […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Live cattle extend slide on long liquidation
Reading Time: < 1 minute Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange February live cattle futures fell on Friday for a seventh straight session on technical selling including fund long liquidation and uncertainty about near-term beef demand, traders said. “We have a lot of protein around right now. We have a few holidays later this month to move some of […] Read more

Klassen: Winter weather weighs on feeder complex
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle prices were relatively unchanged. However, quality features played a larger role in the price structure. Buyers shied away on fleshier yearlings which is often the case when margins move into negative territory. It’s that time of year when thicker coats can be somewhat misleading and buyers pulled […] Read more

Klassen: Friendly beef price outlook supports feeder market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, yearling prices were $2 to as much as $5 higher, while calf markets traded $3-$7 above week-ago levels. The yearling run is coming to a close and feedlots scrambled to secure yearling ownership. Across Alberta, feature lots of high-quality 900-lb. steers were trading around $190 and this set the tone for […] Read more

Strong beef demand lifts Cargill profit for quarter
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Global commodities trader Cargill reported a 14 per cent rise in quarterly profit on Wednesday as strong beef demand and ample supplies of cattle lifted earnings for its animal nutrition and protein segment for a fifth straight quarter. The gains in protein offset a weaker year-on-year result for Cargill’s origination and […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle gain on firmer beef prices
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures settled moderately higher on Wednesday, with help from short-covering and improved wholesale beef values, said traders. December received added support from fund buying after the contract topped the 10-day moving average of 109.648 cents (all figures US$). October live cattle finished up 0.275 cent/lb. at […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle end weaker
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle contracts were weakened Friday by profit-taking and investor caution as they await the bulk of this week’s cash cattle sales, said traders. Futures discounts to initial cash prices limited market losses, they said. June closed down 0.125 cent/lb. to 131.25 cents, and August down 0.175 cent […] Read more