DTN Closing Livestock Comment 12/28 16:11
28 Dec 2017
DTN Closing Livestock Comment 12/28 16:11 Live Cattle Paper Leads Meat Futures Higher The cattle complex closed solidly higher with triple-digit gains scored in nearby live contracts. Lean hog issues settled with moderate progress tied to late-year short-covering and manageable fundamentals. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS The cash cattle market constituted a dead zone with poorly defined bids and asking prices separated by as much as $6-$7 on a live basis. Understandably, the value assessment of feedlots rose through the day as the live board steadily rallied. According to the closing report, the national hog base is $0.61 higher ($53-$59, weighted average $57.95). Corn futures drifted 1-2 cents lower, pretty much stuck in the same sad range it's shambled through since mid-November. The stock market closed higher with the Dow up 63 points and the Nasdaq positive by 10.