Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle and hog futures were mixed on Monday, with front-month contracts easing slightly while deferreds firmed in technical moves.
Traders were unwinding bull spreads as they awaited the U.S. Agriculture Department’s cold storage report, which was released after markets closed.
Monday afternoon’s USDA cold storage report showed month-over-month declines for June pork and beef inventories, which some traders may view as supportive for CME lean hog futures on Tuesday, said analysts.
Typically, the exchange’s live cattle contracts do not respond to U.S. government cold storage results unless there is a significant increase or decrease in beef stocks, they said.
Most active CME October hogs settled up 1.35 cents at 52.625 cents/lb. while August hogs dropped 0.025 cent at 66.425 cents.
CME August live cattle ended 0.2 cent lower at 108.725 cents/lb. CME October live cattle was up 0.35 cent at 110.6 cents.
CME August feeder cattle futures dropped 0.425 cent to 153.325 cents/lb. and September feeders were 0.225 cent lower at 154.325 cents.
— Mark Weinraub is a Reuters commodities correspondent in Chicago; additional reporting by Theopolis Waters.
