DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 08/26 06:01

DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 08/26 06:01 Late Week Meat Futures Likely to Open Mixed The cattle complex seems set to open on a mixed basis tied to a combination of follow-through selling and pre-weekend short-covering. Lean hog futures should also begin with uneven price action with residual selling on one hand and profit-taking on the other. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst Cattle: Steady w/Wed Futures: Mixed Live Equiv $135.75 + .08 * Hogs: Steady-$1 LR Futures: Mixed Lean Equiv $ 81.98 + .92 ** * based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue GENERAL COMMENTS: While it's possible that we could see odds and ends trade in cattle feeding country Friday, trade volume expectations are limited thanks to the active round of business conducted on Wednesday. Although some showlists still have ready cattle for sale, most producers have little stomach to entertain still lower bids than those used at midweek. For their part, despite excellent processing margins, packers don't seem motivated to even bid steady with Wednesday's decline. Perhaps they fear lower beef prices next week tied to the pre-Labor Day apathy of retailers and food managers. Live and feeder futures should open on a mixed basis tied to a slow combination spillover selling and short-covering.