By Theopolis Waters
CHICAGO, Aug 4 (Reuters) – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle barely eked out a four-day win streak after Tuesday’s choppy session, underpinned by anticipation of the same or better cash prices than a week ago, traders said.
Spot-August futures closed 0.225 cent per pound higher at 148.225 cents, and October up 0.100 cent at 148.200 cents.
Some packers still need supplies despite cutting back kills to improve their margins and generate wholesale beef buying interest, a trader said.
Roughly 12,000 fewer cattle for sale than last week is considered supportive to cash prices, he said.
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Last week, slaughter-ready, or cash, cattle in the U.S. Plains sold at mostly $147 to $149 per hundredweight (cwt.), feedlot sources said.
Tuesday morning’s wholesale Choice beef price fell 81 cents per cwt from Monday to $233.18 per cwt. Select cuts dropped 88 cents to $227.95, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.
Beef processor margins for Tuesday were at a negative 85 cents per head, compared with a negative $1.40 on Monday and a negative $30.65 a week ago, as calculated by HedgersEdge.com.
CME feeder cattle drew support from modest live cattle market gains.
August finished up 0.100 cent per lb at 213.950 cents.
PORK PRICES PULL UP HOG FUTURES
CME lean hogs closed higher in response to the morning’s wholesale pork price upswing, traders said.
Spot-August futures, which will expire on Aug. 14, closed up 1.200 cents per lb at 81.400 cents, and most-active traded October finished 2.025 cents higher at 67.350 cents.
The USDA reported Tuesday morning’s wholesale pork price at $89.31 per cwt., a $1.37 jump from Monday.
With respect to the retail and wholesale pork sector, some integrated packing operations “are doing better on the pork side than on the beef side,” said Robb.
Initial conflicting cash price information sidelined some would-be futures buyers.
On Tuesday morning, the average cash hogs price in the western Midwest slumped $1.36 per cwt. from Monday to $75.07, the USDA said.
Cash hogs in the Midwest traded steady to up 50 cents per cwt than on Monday, according to regional hog dealers.
Hogs are plentiful, but packers will remain interested in buying them as long as their margins hold up and they are able to move product, a trader said.
