In the latest trading session at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), cattle futures surged, buoyed by technical trading strategies and anticipated consumer demand ahead of the grilling season, according to analysts cited by Reuters.
Thursday saw a rebound in lean hog futures, recovering from profit-taking activities observed on Wednesday. CME June hogs closed the session up 0.250 cent at 105.800 cents per pound.
Additionally, weakness in Chicago Board of Trade’s corn futures provided further momentum to livestock futures. The boost came after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) released projections indicating that domestic ending stocks would remain at a five-year high, despite a reduction from the previous month.
Traders noted signs of stability in the spot cash cattle market, which lent support to cattle futures. Don Roose, president of US Commodities based in Iowa, remarked on the significance of futures gaining stability, particularly considering their recent discount under the cash market.
However, market analysts cautioned about potential softening in the cash market heading into the following week, compared to earlier prices in the month. This prediction comes after wholesale beef prices failed to sustain gains observed earlier in the week.
According to USDA reports on Thursday afternoon, choice boxed beef cutout prices rose to $298.37 per hundredweight (cwt), up 14 cents from Wednesday, while select cutout prices declined by 87 cents to $295.15 per cwt.
The cash market remained relatively subdued, with only one reported cash trade in Kansas at $182 per cwt. Traders anticipated cash trade prices in the southern US Plains to hover around the $184 per cwt range.
In closing, CME June live cattle settled up 1.05 cents at 173.900 cents per pound, while May feeder cattle futures increased by 1.625 cents to 238.150 cents per pound.
