Chicago | Reuters—Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle firmed on Wednesday as wholesale prices continued to rise and consumer demand for beef has stayed strong amid the U.S. grilling season, market analysts said.
CME feeder cattle futures mostly ticked lower, with prices falling sharper earlier in the session as traders responded to reports of slower demand and lower prices in some cash markets.
Meanwhile, the hog market eased on technical trading and continued softness in wholesale pork belly prices.
The nearby CME lean hog June contract LHM25 settled down 0.500 cent to 99.525 cents per pound on Wednesday, while most active July contract LHN25 closed down 1.025 cents to 102.525 cents per pound.
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CME August live cattle futures LCQ25 settled up 0.800 cent to 208.65 cents per pound — and earlier touched the highest price since May 14. And August feeder cattle futures FCQ25 settled down 1.075 cents at 296.425 cents per pound.
Even with tight inventory, cattle feeders in some areas have been unwilling to pay elevated prices — and have instead opted not to fill their feed lots to capacity, Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag Consulting, wrote in an analyst note Wednesday afternoon.
“Producers in the South are passing on $220.00 packer bids after seeing sales at $230.00 in the North last week,” Setzer said.
In Kansas, cash cattle sold on Tuesday at $219 per hundredweight (cwt), down from last week, said Rich Nelson, chief strategist at Allendale Inc.
But by Wednesday afternoon, cash cattle prices again turned higher, a sign that the market had yet to hit a peak, Nelson said.
Boxed beef prices also firmed Wednesday morning: Choice cuts of boxed beef rose 71-cents to $359.46 per cwt, while select cuts rose $4.06 to $349.02 per cwt, U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed.
