CME August 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures slip as slaughter rises

CME lean hog futures firm

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures fell on Wednesday, as cattle continue to back up, despite slaughter plants’ coming back online, traders said. CME lean hog futures firmed despite rising kill numbers, as social distancing rules in plants keep slaughter below normal rates. The nearby CME June live cattle futures contract settled down […] Read more

CME July 2020 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving average. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Hog futures fall

Live cattle futures firm while slaughter numbers rise

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hog futures fell on Tuesday, pressured by an increase in daily slaughter totals as pork plants come back online, traders said. CME live cattle futures firmed despite rising kill numbers, with the most-actively traded contract passing through a key technical benchmark. The nearby CME June live cattle futures contract settled […] Read more


CME June 2020 live cattle, with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle book third day of gains

CME to change cattle futures trading rules

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures rose for the third day in a row on Monday, hitting their highest since April 1, with ongoing strength in the cash markets leading the way higher, traders said. Hog contracts were lower, with the front-month contract sinking to its lowest since April 29. The nearby CME […] Read more

CME June 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Firm cash market lifts live cattle

Weaker pork prices, supply ideas drag on hogs

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed higher on Friday, with the front contract gaining against back months, led by higher cash cattle prices, traders said. Cash cattle traded as high as $120/cwt in the southern Plains on Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, up from trades a week earlier that ranged […] Read more


CME August 2020 live cattle with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle end mostly lower as beef prices ease

June hogs up, August lower

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed mostly lower on Thursday as wholesale beef prices began to retreat from historic highs as the U.S. slaughter pace improved, generating more meat supplies, analysts said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) August live cattle futures settled down 1.425 cents at 97 cents/lb. (all figures US$). Front-month June […] Read more

CME June 2020 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hog futures dip after belly prices dive

Cattle down on ideas of beef prices peaking

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures fell on Wednesday on technical selling and signs that wholesale pork prices may have peaked after a massive run-up due to closings at meat-packing plants as COVID-19 sickened workers, traders said. The U.S. pork cutout value fell on Tuesday afternoon by nearly $9/cwt, to $112.82, with pork […] Read more


CME June 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: June live cattle limit up on soaring beef prices

Large supplies of hogs, cattle still loom over futures

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed higher on Tuesday, with nearby contracts rising the daily maximum, as surging wholesale beef prices and expectations U.S. beef and pork production would drop spurred speculative buying, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) June live cattle futures settled up 4.5 cents, the expanded daily limit, at […] Read more

CME August 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures lower on profit-taking

August, October cattle limit down; June hogs also down

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed lower on Monday, with some contract months falling their daily three-cent limit on profit-taking amid signs the U.S. meat-packing sector was stepping up beef production, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) June live cattle futures settled down 1.975 cents at 92.675 cents/lb., after surging to a […] Read more


CME June 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: June cattle limit up on surging beef prices, meat shortages

Lean hogs down on profit-taking

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures surged by their daily trading limits for a second straight session on Thursday on soaring beef prices and concerns about meat shortages because of recent packing plant closures due to the coronavirus. Shuttered slaughterhouses across North America due to the pandemic have left ranchers nowhere to ship […] Read more

CME June 2020 live cattle with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Futures surge on technical buying as plants reopen

CME cattle futures close limit up

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle and hog futures rose on Wednesday amid a flurry of technical buying — with some live and feeder cattle futures surging to daily trading limits — as investors said they were keeping a close eye on signs of packing plants reopening in the wake of coronavirus infections among workers. […] Read more