CHICAGO, Aug 23 (Reuters) – Chicago Mercantile Exchange
lean hog futures fell for a third session on Wednesday, as
seasonal pressure mixed with weaker pork prices, analysts said.
“This time of year for October hogs, it’s tough to know
which direction to go in,” said Joe Kooima, commodity broker at
Kooima Kooima Varilek Trading Inc, noting the fundamental
headwinds adding to seasonal pressure.
“Cash is weaker, cutout is weaker, weights are a little bit
higher than a year ago, so that’s strike one, strike two, strike
three.”
The most-active October futures lost 1.025 cents to
78.550 cents per pound.
Daily hog slaughter of 473,000 head was down from 482,000
the same period last year, according to the U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
The USDA quoted the wholesale pork carcass cutout at $100.79
per cwt, down 2.86 cents from Tuesday.
Live cattle futures eased slightly, lacking direction as
cash trade remains light and analysts wait to see the impact of
high temperatures across the U.S. Plains.
“Last week, we just didn’t really have a good cash number.
So you have to carry that number into the next week, until we
hear more,” said Kooima. “It’s just the doldrums.”
Most-active October live cattle added 0.050 cents to
178.675 cents per pound. October feeder cattle slipped
0.350 cents to close at 250.875 cents per pound.
Packers have been slowing cattle slaughter, only processing
118,000 head, down from 124,000 the same period last year, the
USDA said.
Beef packer margins perked up to 64.30 per head, according
to Denver-based Hedgers Edge.
Boxed beef prices were steady-firmer, with choice cuts flat
at $317.05 per hundredweight (cwt), while select cuts added
$2.08 to $291.59 per cwt., according to the U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
(Reporting by Christopher Walljasper; Editing by Krishna
Chandra Eluri)
Read More: Commodities : LIVESTOCK-CME lean hogs dip as seasonal pressures mount –