DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 04/07 06:04

DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 04/07 06:04 Cattle Complex Seems Geared for Mixed Prices on Opening Live and feeder cattle futures should open on a mixed basis thanks to a combination of follow-through buying and renewed long liquidation. On the other hand, hog contracts seem set to begin some higher with the help of short-covering and firming cash sales. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst Cattle: Steady-$2 HR Futures: Mixed Live Equiv $145.48 -0.86 * Hogs: Steady-$1 HR Futures: 10-30 HR Lean Equiv $ 82.58 +0.28 ** * based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue GENERAL COMMENTS: Although cattle buyers have been raising their hands (albeit with relatively modest bids) for the last two days, they have been largely unsuccessful in covering short-term kill needs. They'll give the procurement effort another go Thursday. Opening bids should look familiar (i.e., $133 in the South and $212 in the North), but firm asking prices of $135-plus in the South and $216-plus in the North may eventually force them to dig deeper in their pockets (though perhaps not until sometime Friday). Look for live and feeder futures to open on a mixed basis, torn between further short-covering and long liquidation.