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DTN Midday Livestock Comments 02/13 11:56
Cattle Futures Move Lower While Waiting for Cash Cattle to Trade
Still no cash cattle trade has developed, but packer interest should improve
at any minute.
ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst
GENERAL COMMENTS:
The livestock complex is trading lower into Friday's noon hour as the lean
hog market simply doesn't have the support it needs fundamentally or
technically and the cattle complex is waiting for cash cattle to trade. A
single bid is currently on the table in Nebraska, but otherwise nothing has
surfaced in the cash sector. March corn is up 1/2 cent per bushel and March
soybean meal is down $0.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 210.80
points and NASDAQ is up 128.04 points.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex has drifted slightly lower as traders try to remain
patient, waiting for cash cattle to trade. It's fully assumed prices will be
higher later Friday when trade develops, but the real question is: How much
higher? February live cattle are steady at $242.50, April live cattle are down
$0.67 at $239.97 and June live cattle are down $0.45 at $235.90. A single bid
is currently on the table in Nebraska at $238, but otherwise no news has
developed. Asking prices remain firm in Texas at $245 to $247, but aren't
clearly established elsewhere.
Boxed beef prices are mixed: choice down $0.45 ($364.39) and select up $0.26
($363.29) with a movement of 30 loads (24.05 loads of choice, 2.18 loads of
select, zero loads of trim and 3.48 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE:
Keeping in alignment with the live cattle contracts, the feeder cattle
complex is trading slightly lower as well. March feeders are down $0.02 at
$365.70, April feeders are down $0.72 at $362.90 and May feeders are down $0.95
at $358.95. Demand has mostly higher this week in the countryside for both
feeders and calves, but there has been notable interest in the heavier weight
feeders that will make grass cattle in a few months.
LEAN HOGS:
In keeping with its lower trend, the lean hog complex continues to lose
position as the market anticipates more supply to be working its way into the
system, which causes traders some fear that pork cutout values could weaken.
Not to mention, just a little over a week ago the market did reach new all-time
highs in the futures complex which put heavy pressure on the market's technical
side. April lean hogs are down $0.30 at $91.52, June lean hogs are down $0.75
at $104.80 and July lean hogs are down $0.87 at $106.47.
The projected CME Lean Hog Index for 2/12/2026 is up $0.04 at $86.93 and the
actual index for 2/11/2026 is up $0.37 at $86.89. Hog prices are unavailable on
the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report because of confidentiality. However, we can
see that only 409 head have traded this morning, and that the market's five-day
rolling average sits at $86.91. Pork cutouts total 174.97 loads with 140.53
loads of pork cuts and 34.44 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $0.78,
$94.87.
ShayLe Stewart can be reached at shayle.stewart@dtn.com
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