Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange slid on Tuesday, pressured by falling wholesale beef prices.
“We had a really disappointing box beef value fall off to start the week yesterday, and a little follow through today,” said Matthew Wiegand, risk management consultant at FuturesOne.
Most retailers have completed purchases for holiday sales, Wiegand added.
“The retailers have their prime ribs booked for Christmas, so there’s probably less aggressive retail buying until we get out past Christmas.”
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CME benchmark February live cattle fell 2.2 cents, to 153.625 cents/lb., while the spot December contract lost 1.675 cent to 151.55 cents/lb. (all figures US$).
Most-active CME January feeder cattle lost 1.975 cents, to 181.8 cents/lb.
Boxed beef prices fell again on Tuesday, with choice cuts losing 66 cents, to $242.65/cwt, while select cuts lost $1.97, to $219.14/cwt, USDA said.
Meanwhile, lean hogs dropped, pressured by ample market-ready supplies, despite strong slaughter runs.
“Seems like there are still enough market-ready hogs, short term,” said Wiegand.
CME February lean hogs lost 3.6 cents, to 86.925 cents/lb.
Nearby December hogs firmed 0.2 cent, to 82.275 cents/lb.
The CME’s lean hog index, a two-day weighted average of cash hog prices, eased eight cents, to $82.79/cwt.
— Christopher Walljasper reports on agriculture and ag commodities for Reuters from Chicago.
