DTN Closing Livestock Comment 05/09 16:15

DTN Closing Livestock Comment 05/09 16:15 Late-Spring Bullishness Rockets From Cattle Complex Live and feeder cattle futures exploded with triple-digit gains, reacting to aggressive short-covering and greater packer spending in feedlot country. On the other hand, lean hog issues settled under pressure tied to cattle/hog spreading and long liquidation. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS: Activity in the cash cattle arena was limited to the distribution of new showlists. The mid-May offering looks mixed, larger in Kansas and Colorado but smaller in Texas and Nebraska. Asking prices were poorly defined. According to the closing report, the national hog base is $0.01 higher compared with the Prior Day settlement ($65.00-$74.00, weighted average $71.27). The corn board got off to a tough start for the week with nearby contracts losing 8 cents or more. Prices were pressured ahead of new s&d tables set for release on Tuesday. Many are expected to see larger projections of corn production and carryover. U.S. stocks closed mixed in high volume with gains in health care offsetting declines in energy as oil prices fell. The Dow closed off 34 points with the Nasdaq better by 14.