DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 01/22 06:16

DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 01/22 06:16 Meat Futures Staged to Open Higher Thanks to Follow-Through Buying The cattle complex is likely to open moderately higher, supported by follow-through buying and ideas of near steady feedlot sales. Lean hog futures should also initially benefit from spillover buying, constructive fundamentals, and bull-spreading interest. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst Cattle: Steady-$2 LR Futures: 25-50 HR Live Equiv $152.87 - $1.07* Hogs: $1 HR Futures: 25-50 HR Lean Equiv $ 78.10 - $0.32** * based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue GENERAL COMMENTS: Only a handful of cattle have changed hands so far this week, but somehow over the next five to 10 hours, buyers and sellers will need to find an agreeable price level in order to satisfy minimal marketing and slaughter needs. It seems safe to say that country price attitudes and expectations through the week have been as volatile as the board itself. Feedlot determination has taken a swing for the better thanks to Thursday's surge. Asking prices should be around $135 plus in the South and $212 plus in the North. Needless to say, much will depend upon how the board and/or outside markets behave. The Jan. 1 Cattle on Feed report is scheduled to be released Friday at 2 p.m. CST. Average trade guesses are generally positive: on feed, off 1%; placed in December, off 5% to 6%; marketed in December, up 2%. At this time, there's some question about the impact of severe winter weather surrounding Washington D.C. It could be bad enough to delay scheduled reports such as Cattle on Feed and Cold Storage. Live and feeder cattle seem set to open moderately higher, supported by follow-through buying and possibilities of cash stability.