Live cattle gave up some of Tuesday’s gains before settling slightly higher, with a meatpacking plant on strike and dry weather and fires in Nebraska further tightening historically low cattle numbers.

CBOT corn futures climbed on Wednesday following crude oil prices, which rose more than five per cent on Wednesday after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to attack several energy facilities across the Middle East, heightening the risk of further disruptions to energy supplies in the region.

Strength in crude oil is seen as supportive given corn’s role as a feedstock for ethanol. However, rising corn prices also makes feeding cattle more expensive, supporting feeder cattle futures, according to Karl Setzer, co-founder of ConsusAg Consulting.

Meanwhile, workers have gone on strike at a large JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, Colorado, which is likely to reduce U.S. beef production at a time when consumers face record prices for beef.

CME April live cattle settled 0.175 cents higher at 235.4 cents per pound. April feeders finished down 1.075 cents at 358.725 cents per pound.

Meanwhile, dry weather and fires in pasturelands of Nebraska could displace tens of thousands of head of cattle and spur ranchers to slaughter parts of the herd they have been working to rebuild, according to analysts.

Beef packer margins rose to $142.15 per head on Wednesday, up from gains of $128.90 on Tuesday, and losses of $10.45 a week ago, according to livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.

CME lean hog futures LHJ26 ended up 0.025 cent at 93.75 cents per pound.

— Reporting by Renee Hickman

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JBS workers strike in Colorado

Beef packers have scaled back production in recent weeks and traders are monitoring developments at a large JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, Colo., where workers have gone on strike.

The dispute reduces U.S. beef production capacity at a time when consumers face record prices for hamburgers and steaks and Trump has struggled to make good on a pledge to cool costs.

The workers have launched a two-week strike and will remain on the picket lines until JBS negotiates fairly with workers, according to the union.

Beef prices soared after a years-long drought burned up grazing lands and drove ranchers to slash their herds to the lowest level in 75 years.

Chicago Mercantile Exchange April live cattle settled 2.35 cents higher at 233.25 cents per pound (USD). April feeders finished up 12.30 cents at 355.45 cents per pound.

Beef packer margins rose to US$57.10 per head on Monday, up from gains of $45.20 on Friday, and losses of $117.95 a week ago, according to livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.

CME lean hog futures ended up 0.05 cents at 93.50 cents per pound.

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Most-active April live cattle contracts gained 3.550 cents to close at 240.975 cents per pound. June live cattle settled at 236.575 cents a pound, up 2.775 cents.

Most-traded March feeder cattle closed at 367.450 cents per pound, up 2.675 cents. April contracts gained 3.325 cents to settle at 364.600 cents a pound.

Choice boxed beef slid by $1.63 to $365.92 per cwt, the USDA said in its afternoon report. Select beef was valued at $362.58 per cwt, down $0.32.

Historically tight U.S. cattle supplies have elevated cash cattle prices in recent weeks, while meat packers’ profit margins have fallen to deeply negative levels.

Packers were losing nearly $270 per head of cattle as of Tuesday, according to Denver-based livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.com LLC.

Most-active April lean hogs settled at 93.850 cents a pound, down 1.650 cents. June contracts closed at 107.475 cents a pound, down 1.425 cents.

Pork carcass cutout value settled at $93.77 per cwt, down $1.69.

-With files from Reuters

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Most-active April live cattle contracts lost 0.775 cents to close at 237.425 cents a pound. June futures settled at 233.800 cents a pound, down 0.525 cents.

Most-traded March feeder cattle futures closed at 364.775 cents a pound, down 2.675 cents. April feeders settled at 361.275 cents per pound, down 1.925 cents.

Choice boxed beef slipped by $0.21 to end the afternoon at $367.55 per cwt the USDA reported. Select boxed beef was valued at $362.90 per cwt, down $2.45.

“Following a large spike higher last week, Wednesday, the market has been struggling to find its bullish footing,” wrote Walsh Trading analyst Jefferson Fosse.

Fosse noted that markets have had little reaction to news of increased beef imports from Argentina and to news that a New World screwworm dispersal facility had been completed in Texas. He added he was still bullish on cattle prices for the long run, but had some concerns in the short-term outlook.

Most-active April lean hog futures closed at 95.500 cents a pound, down 1.225 cents. June contracts closed down 0.900 cents at 108.900 cents per pound.

Pork carcass cutout value slipped by $0.37 to end the afternoon at $95.46 per cwt.

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Most-active April live cattle futures closed at 238.200 cents a pound, up 0.950 cents. June contracts gained 0.475 cents to settle at 234.325 cents.

Most-traded March feeder cattle contracts closed at 367.450 cents per pound, up 0.025 cents. April feeders settled at 363.200 cents per pound, a gain of 0.400 cents.

Choice boxed beef fell by $1.57 per cwt to $367.76 per cwt. Select beef gained $0.82 to settle at $365.35 per cwt.

“Cash cattle and beef market fundamentals and technicals remain solid, but the U.S. stock market has wobbled, and other commodity markets have become more unstable,” wrote analyst Jim Wyckoff, naming gold, silver and copper.

The size of daily price moves in gold and silver has spooked commodity market traders, Wyckoff said. For cattle futures to trend toward record high prices and for lean hog futures to continue their upward track, “it’s likely the U.S. stock indexes will need to at least hold near their present levels, while the metals markets will need to squash the recent extreme daily price volatility.”

Most-active April lean hog futures lost 1.225 cents to settle at 96.725 cents a pound. June contracts lost 0.425 cents and closed at 109.800 cents per pound.

The USDA reported pork carcass cutout value at $95.83 per cwt on Monday afternoon, up $2.06.

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CME April live cattle LCJ26 finished 51.65 cents to end at 237.25 cents per pound, while March feeder cattle FCH26 finished 3.35 cents higher at 367.325 cents per pound.

The planned release of sterile flies in Texas and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorization for ivermectin to treat screwworm infestations further solidified the belief among market players that the border will remain closed to cattle imports.

Cattle futures had stumbled on Thursday, breaking a three-day rally under pressure from a strike authorization vote at a JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, Colorado, analysts said.

Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s biannual report stated the U.S. cattle herd had fallen to its smallest size since 1951. Despite being a week old, the report has continued to hang over Chicago cattle futures.

“We can’t get the inventory report out of our heads showing supplies remain tight,” said Dan Basse, president of AgResource Company.

Hog futures ended little changed, though strong demand for pork and a tight hog herd provided a floor on prices.

CME April lean hogs LHJ26 settled 0.425 cent lower at 97.95 cents per pound.

The USDA priced choice boxed beef ticked $2.08 higher to $369.33 per hundredweight (cwt) as of Friday afternoon, and select boxed beef rose $4.16 to $364.53 per cwt.

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However, bullish fundamentals, including a tight cattle supply and the ongoing closure of the southern border to Mexican cattle imports, will continue to add strong support to prices.

CME April live cattle LCJ26 finished 5.275 cents lower at 535.25 cents per pound, while March feeder cattle FCH26 finished 6 cents lower at 364.075 cents per pound.

Workers at a the Greeley JBS beef plant authorized a strike after the close of trade on Wednesday, though it is unclear whether a strike will actually take place.

“We have been bargaining for eight months and JBS has prevented us from reaching a contract as a result of their Unfair Labor Practices. They continue to increase chain speeds and create dangerous working conditions all while reducing hours for workers. At the same time, the company is insisting on being able to steal workers’ pay through improper wage deductions. JBS has left us no alternative but to authorize a strike. Enough is enough,” said Leticia Avalos, a JBS worker in a press release.

A strike at the plant would likely depress cash cattle prices, which would in turn weigh on futures.

“It would be moderately important, but it’s one plant. It wouldn’t take more than two or three bucks out of cash cattle at most. It’s something of a concern but we have some skepticism over how successful they will be,” said Rich Nelson, director of research at Allendale.

Hog futures ended little changed, though strong demand for pork and a tight hog herd provided a floor on prices.

CME April lean hogs LHJ26 settled 0.70 cent lower at 98.45 cents per pound.

The USDA priced choice boxed beef ticked 77 cents lower at $367.25 per hundredweight (cwt) as of Thursday afternoon, and select boxed beef fell $1.72 to $360.37 per cwt.

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CME April live cattle LCJ26 finished 0.175 cent higher at 241.80 cents per pound, while March feeder cattle FCH26 finished up 2.15 cents to 370.075 cents per pound.

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s biannual report stated the U.S. cattle herd had fallen to its smallest size since 1951.

Many traders believe the U.S. is unlikely to resume imports of Mexican cattle into the U.S. due to the continuous spread of screwworm in northern Mexico, further constraining supply.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday announced it will disperse glow-in-the-dark, sterile flies in Mexico, closer to the U.S. border, and in southern Texas, as officials race to keep flesh-eating New World screwworm pests from spreading into the U.S., the agency said.

The northernmost active case in Mexico was about 200 miles away from the U.S. border, and cases have continued to spread in Tamaulipas and further south in Mexico.

Hog futures also gained support from a relatively low hog herd. Strong export demand for hogs has winnowed away the hog herd in the U.S.

CME April lean hogs LHJ26 settled 0.30 cent higher at 98.45 cents per pound.

The USDA priced choice boxed beef ticked 57 cents lower to $370.14 per hundredweight (cwt) as of Wednesday morning, and select boxed beef fell 52 cents to 366.71 per cwt.

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CME April live cattle LCJ26 finished 2.1 cents higher at 241.625 cents per pound, while March feeder cattle FCH26 finished up 1.575 at 367.925 cents per pound.

CME April lean hogs LHJ26 settled 1.525 cents higher at 98.15 cents per pound.

“There’s still residual leftover support from the inventory report on Friday showing tightening supplies,” said Dan Basse, president of AgResource. “It’s still a bullish tailwind.”

The nation had 86.2 million cattle and calves as of January 1, the USDA said in the report, after a persistent drought drove ranchers to slash their herds. That was down 0.4 per cent from a year earlier, when the herd also hit its lowest level since 1951.

Market players meanwhile are keeping a close eye on the spread of screwworm in Mexico as it inches closer to the U.S.-Mexico border.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will disperse glow-in-the-dark, sterile flies in Mexico, closer to the U.S. border, and in southern Texas, as officials race to keep flesh-eating New World screwworm pests from spreading in Mexico, the agency said.

The northernmost active case in Mexico was about 200 miles away from the U.S. border, and cases have continued to spread in Tamaulipas and further south in Mexico.

The USDA priced choice boxed beef at $370.87 per hundredweight (cwt) as of Tuesday morning, up $2.66 from the previous day, and select boxed beef at $367.76 per cwt, up $2.85.

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Most-active April live cattle futures closed at 239.525 cents a pound, up 2.725 cents. June live cattle gained 2.525 cents to settle at 234.250 cents a pound.

Most-traded March feeder cattle contracts closed at 366.350 cents a pound, up 6.075 cents. April feeders gained 5.900 cents to settle at 364.175 cents per pound.

Choice boxed beef value rose by $2.65 to end the afternoon at $368.21 per cwt, the USDA reported. Select beef was valued at $364.91 per cwt, up $2.97.

The U.S. cattle herd dwindled to its smallest size since 1951, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Friday.

The nation had a total of 86.2 million cattle and calves as of January 1, the USDA said in a biannual report, after a persistent drought drove ranchers to slash their herds. That was down 0.4 per cent from a year earlier, when the herd also hit its lowest level since 1951.

April lean hog futures closed at 96.625 cents a pound, up 1.475 cents. February lean hogs gained 0.500 cents to settle at 87.850 cents a pound.

Pork carcass cutout value sat at $95.70 per cwt, up $1.48.

-With files from Reuters

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