DTN Midday Livestock Comments          07/16 11:41

   Lean Hog Futures Join the Market Rally Midday Wednesday

   Strong buyer support developed in all livestock trade Wednesday morning with 
firm follow-through support in cattle futures, while lean hog contracts quickly 
joined the market rally party.

Rick Kment
DTN Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   Active buyer support redeveloped in cattle futures Wednesday morning, with 
Feeder cattle futures once again leading the upward shift in prices, holding 
triple-digit gains in all nearby contracts at midday. Spillover support quickly 
and aggressively moved into live cattle and lean hog futures, with moderate to 
strong gains seen across the complex. Very little new market direction is 
evident from a technical or fundamental perspective on Wednesday morning, but 
the lack of resistance throughout the market midweek is likely to lead to 
additional support for the rest of the session. December corn is up 4 1/4 at 
$4.24 and December soybean meal is up $4.40 at $283.9. The Dow Jones Industrial 
Average is down 15.07 at 44,008.22.

LIVE CATTLE:

   Live cattle gains have redeveloped Wednesday, with the majority of support 
seen in early 2026 contract months. The continued and aggressive support in 
feeder cattle trade has been the focus through the morning, with traders still 
looking for additional confirmation of higher beef values through the week and 
steady to increased cash cattle trade. The ability to sustain current gains 
through the rest of the day is likely to help support longer-term support 
through the entire live cattle complex. Cash cattle activity has seen another 
slow start to the morning in cash cattle country with asking prices around 
$232-plus in the South, but they are not established in the North. Bids remain 
hard to find. Packer inquiry should improve as the day progresses. Having said 
that, significant trade volume will likely be delayed until Thursday and/or 
Friday. August live cattle are $0.50 higher at $222.9, October live cattle are 
$0.25 higher at $219.525 and December live cattle are $0.50 higher at $220.10. 
Boxed beef prices are Lower: choice down $4.11 ($373.61) and select down $1.73 
($360.85) with a movement of 103.97 loads (79.11 loads of choice, 18.25 loads 
of select, zero loads of trim and 6.61 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   Feeder cattle continue to lead livestock, and the cattle complex is higher, 
with triple-digit gains seen through the entire feeder cattle complex. August 
futures are trading $1.45 per cwt higher, at $323.72 per cwt, with traders once 
again testing contract high levels. The lack of buyer pressure in the cattle 
market in general, and specifically the feeder cattle futures, has markets 
pushing even higher with very little resistance currently seen. On the 
continuous monthly feeder cattle chart, prices have a rocketlike projection 
with a $80 per cwt rally seen over the last year, without a significant market 
correction within that time frame. This has still kept traders bullish, but 
some are questioning the ability for additional technical support to continue 
this trend over the coming months. At the Oklahoma National Stockyards Tuesday, 
compared to the last sale two weeks ago: Feeder steers 10.00-20.00 higher, 
800-950 pounds lightly tested and steady to 5.00 higher. Steer calves 
15.00-25.00 higher. Feeder heifers and heifer calves 10.00-25.00 higher. Demand 
remains extremely good with active trade as buyers completely disregarded the 
sharply lower cattle futures on Monday. Rains fell again this past weekend, 
keeping summer pastures green. Quality on cattle seen on the sale was mostly 
average. August feeders are $1.00 higher at $323.275, September feeders are 
$1.23 higher at $323.6 and October feeders are $1.03 higher at $321.50.

LEAN HOGS:

   Lean hog futures pushed prices higher Wednesday following early gains in 
outside financial markets and continued buyer support through the cattle 
complex. It was hard to find a significantly weaker market during early morning 
trade Wednesday, which helped to draw buyers back into the complex. Unlike the 
cattle complex, which has been on a long-term market rally and shows little 
signs of cooling in the near future, lean hog futures are bouncing off of 
2-month lows, based on uncertainty in global pork demand surrounding tariffs 
and overall trade activity. With August futures taking over as spot month 
contracts, prices continue to hold well above the $100 per cwt level. But the 
fact that other nearby contracts are trading at a $16 to $24 per cwt discount 
to spot month contracts will continue to keep traders cautious and likely 
skittish through the near future. August lean hogs are $0.53 higher at $104.45, 
October lean hogs are $1.13 higher at $88.6 and December lean hogs are $1.20 
higher at $80.375. Hog Prices are higher on the Daily Direct Morning Hog 
report, up $1.45 with a weighted average of $111.81, ranging from $101.00 to 
$116.50 on 3,595 head with a five-day rolling average of $111.16. Pork Cutouts 
totaled 150.58 loads with 133.61 loads of pork cuts and 16.97 loads of trim. 
Pork cutout values are down $0.19 at $113.39.




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