Jan 26 (Reuters) – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle contracts traded higher on Tuesday after short-covering and cash price expectations for later this week pared Wednesday’s losses, traders said.
* At 8:46 a.m. CST February was up 0.875 cent per lb to 132.300 cents, and April was 0.675 cent higher at 132.900.
* The four-day wholesale beef price slide wore down margins for packers, which may prompt them to spend less for supplies, said analysts and traders.
* However, they added that 17,500 fewer animals for sale than last week might underpin cash prices in parts of the U.S. Plains.
* Last week, market-ready, or cash, cattle in the U.S. Plains brought $130 to $135 per cwt, said feedlot sources.
* Monday afternoon’s wholesale beef price dropped $1.04 per cwt from Friday to $223.79. Select cuts fell $1.74 to $218.94, based U.S. Department of Agriculture data.
* FEEDER CATTLE – Spot-January feeder cattle, which will expire on Thursday, was up 0.975 cent per lb to 161.200 cents, helped by live cattle futures advances and higher cash feeder cattle prices.
* LEAN HOGS – Spot-February was up 0.200 cent per lb to 63.725 cents, and April was up 0.100 cent to 68.875 cents.
* CME lean hogs drew support from Monday’s firm cash and wholesale beef prices, traders said.
* Monday afternoon’s average cash hog price in Iowa/Minnesota at $55.95 per cwt was 49 cents per cwt higher than on Friday.
* The afternoon wholesale pork price on Monday was up 29 cents per cwt from Friday to $75.58, driven by more than $4 higher costs for pork bellies, the USDA said.
* Processors are topping off inventories for the balance of this week’s production, a trader said.
* He said some supermarkets are buying pork to feature for Valentine’s Day, while end users are storing pork bellies for later use.
