DTN Midday Livestock Comments 12/29 11:55

DTN Midday Livestock Comments 12/29 11:55 Livestock Futures Hold Moderate Losses Tuesday Moderate losses continue to hold Tuesday morning as traders focus on position taking following the recent market rally that has developed through the last half of December. Light bids are starting to develop through parts of the South, which could help to spark higher cash cattle trade through midweek. By Rick Kment DTN Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS: Light trade through the entire livestock market is leaving cattle futures mostly lower. Moderate pressure is holding in live cattle futures as February and April losses are carrying the brunt of the pressure with 60 to 90 cent losses. Front-month lean hog futures are trying to establish buyer support, but the lack of volume remains problematic in getting support back into the market Tuesday. Corn prices are lower in light trade. March corn futures are 1 cent lower. Stock markets are higher in light trade. The Dow Jones is 168 points higher while Nasdaq is up 53 points. LIVE CATTLE: Moderate pressure continues to be seen through live cattle futures Tuesday morning as traders remain focused on light to moderate pressure which started to develop Monday. The main focus in the market continues to be based on position taking at the end of the year given the aggressive market shift over the last couple of years. But this may give way to some late-week buyer support that could quickly develop Wednesday and Thursday. Trade volume through the entire cattle market is expected to remain sluggish through the entire session, leading to light trade for the entire week. Cash cattle markets are quiet at midday with a few scattered bids starting to develop in the South at $126 per cwt. Asking prices are seen around $132 to $134 in the South and $204 and higher in the North. It is likely that active trade will be delayed until Wednesday or Thursday, but some activity could trickle into the market sometime through the afternoon if bids start to improve. Beef cut-outs at midday are higher, $3.18 higher (select) and up $4.70 per cwt (choice) with light movement of 55 total loads reported (19 loads of choice cuts, 8 loads of select cuts, 4 loads of trimmings, 24 loads of ground beef). FEEDER CATTLE: Midmorning buyer support has eroded once again through feeder cattle futures as March and April futures are holding narrow triple digit losses at midday. The lack of buyer support is not surprising given the softness which quickly developed Monday. But the overall tone of the market still has not changed given the strong previous market shift over the last couple of weeks. Even though markets are expected to remain lightly traded the last two trading days of the week, there is expected to be some additional market shifts possible before traders break for the long New Year's Holiday weekend. LEAN HOGS: Front-month February lean hog contracts have bounced higher at midday with a 20 cent per cwt gain. The rest of the contract has moved well off of morning lows as buyer support is slowly seen stepping into the market. But at this point it is unlikely that there will be enough support developing to significantly change the overall pattern of trade or push additional interest into the market before the end of the session. It is possible that the entire complex may continue to remain stuck in the current pattern through the remainder of the week with no strong push in either direction as traders look for additional direction once they return from the long holiday weekend and start 2016. Cash prices are lower on the National Direct morning cash hog report. The weighted average price fell $0.35 per cwt to $48.88 per cwt with the range from $46.00 to $49.00 per cwt on 3,759 head reported sold. Cash prices are lower on the Iowa Minnesota Direct morning cash hog report. The weighted average price fell $0.42 per cwt to $48.04 per cwt with the range from $48.00 to $49.00 per cwt on 745 head reported sold. The National Pork Plant Report reported 122 loads selling with prices up $1.80 per cwt. Lean hog index for 12/24 is at $53.50 down 0.51, with a projected two-day index of $53.13, down 0.37. Rick Kment can be reached at rick.kment@dtn.com (BAS) Copyright 2015 DTN/The Progressive Farmer. All rights reserved.