DTN Closing Livestock Comment 03/28 16:04

DTN Closing Livestock Comment 03/28 16:04 Lean Futures Respond Positively to Quarterly Snout Count For the most part, lean hog futures scored triple-digit gains in the immediate wake of the March 1 H&P report, supported by fewer signs of herd expansion than generally expected. The cattle complex settled mixed in the live trade and modestly lower in the feeder market. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS: The cash cattle market was all about window dressing Monday and little else as packers made their rounds gathering new showlists. Ready numbers varied from state to state (i.e., larger in Nebraska and Texas, smaller in Kansas and Colorado), but the aggregate offering looks to be somewhat smaller than last week. Cattle were not priced as producers waited for the board to stabilize. According to the closing report, the Iowa hog base is $0.81 higher compared with the Prior Day settlement ($52.50-63.50, weighted average $63.03). Corn futures settle fractionally higher as traders cautiously positioned ahead of key reports on Thursday i.e., quarterly grain stocks and planting prospects). U.S. stocks closed mixed in low volume trade as investors monitored oil prices and awaited data and comments from key Fed policymakers due later in the week. The Dow closed 19 points higher with the Nasdaq off 6.