DTN Early Word Opening Livestock

Light Buyer Support Expected

Rick Kment
By  Rick Kment , DTN Analyst
(DTN file photo)

Cattle: Steady Futures: Firm Live Equiv $134.29 -0.29*

Hogs: Steady Futures: $1 Higher Lean Equiv $84.57 -0.31**

* based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue

** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue

GENERAL COMMENTS:

Cash cattle activity is expected to remain sluggish through the first half of the week with bids and asking prices undeveloped at this point. With showlists mixed to mostly smaller, the potential for packers to continue to improve bids through the end of the week will likely be based on the direction of beef values and futures trade. But at this point, limited interest is expected to be seen until the last half of the week. Limited follow through buyer support is expected to develop early Tuesday morning with overall support moving through the complex and building on the gains seen early in the week. This may help spark additional commercial buyer activity in most contracts.

Narrow to moderate early week gains are expected to help draw additional buyer support early Tuesday morning with traders once again focusing on building long-term support through the complex. The question about just how much trade activity will develop early in the session, and how active early buying interest will be, is the focus through most of the complex. Cash hog bids are expected to be steady to $1 per cwt lower early Tuesday morning, although most bids are likely steady to weak. Total slaughter schedules for Tuesday are expected to be around 472,000 head.

BULL SIDE BEAR SIDE
1)

October live cattle futures continue to gain momentum, breaking through resistance levels, and moving to $114.17 per cwt. This is expected to help support buyer interest in the near future.

1)

Limited early trade activity in live cattle futures is expected to leave markets choppy and potentially moving in a moderate to wide range early Tuesday morning.

2)

Firm trade interest developed late Monday in feeder cattle futures, renewing underlying support through the complex.

2)

Lack of underlying support over the last week in beef values has continued to create additional concerns that the top end of the market may have been reached.

3)

Summer lean hog futures contracts have continued to surge higher with prices breaking through long-term resistance levels. June futures have set contract highs once again Monday.

3)

Cash hog values remain stuck in a steady to weak pattern with readily available market hogs to fill needed procurement levels.

4)

Expectations of moderate to strong buyer activity through the rest of the year and well into 2019 has helped spark additional long-term support through the entire complex.

4)

Despite the continued firmness in lean hog futures, the consistent and wide price discount in nearby contracts to summer 2019 pork contracts continues to exist, leaving very limited interest in nearby trade.

Rick Kment can be reached at rick.kment@dtn.com

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Rick Kment