DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 09/27 05:47

DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 09/27 05:47 Hogs Await Thursday's USDA Report It is difficult to say how cattle and hog traders will react to Wednesday's news that the U.S. and Japan are entering bilateral trade talks, but cautiously concerned would be the first guess as Japan is one of the top buyers of U.S. beef and pork. Otherwise, hog traders are apt to be cautious enough as it is, awaiting USDA's quarterly inventory report at 2 p.m. CDT. By Todd Hultman DTN Analyst Cattle: Steady Futures: Mixed Live Equiv: $135.22 -0.76* Hogs: Steady to $1 higher Futures: Mixed Lean Equiv: $ 85.84 +0.42** * based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue GENERAL COMMENTS: Wednesday's trade finished on a bullish note with December cattle posting a new seven-month high while cash bids inched higher, to $109. Later in the afternoon, AP reported that Japan and the U.S. were beginning negotiations on a new trade agreement -- news that may put a chill in traders' enthusiasm for both cattle and hogs. So far in 2018, Japan has taken one-third of U.S. beef exports and 17% of U.S. pork exports. Otherwise, traders will be watching to see if any cash trade develops Thursday, and it will be interesting to see if Wednesday's new high can survive until the end of the week.