DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 03/13 06:46
13 Mar 2019
DTN Early Word Opening Livestock 03/13 06:46 Beef Demand May be Slowing Cattle futures suffered significant losses again Tuesday. This should be met with some buyer interest after two days of pressure. The problem is that the decline did significant technical damage to the charts, which may be difficult to overcome. Hogs moved in the opposite direction as traders seem to have become friendlier to the market. By Robin Schmahl DTN Dairy Analyst Cattle: Steady Futures: Mixed Live Equiv: $150.87 +0.52* Hogs: Higher Futures: Higher Lean Equiv: $ 72.11 +1.20** * based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue GENERAL COMMENTS: Packers and feedlots remain in their usual standoff with cash trade looking more like business will take place at steady or maybe lower prices. The steep decline of cattle futures may give packers the edge in negotiations. However, strong cutout values balance the business. There are some reports trickling in that beef demand is slipping, but there is no concrete evidence of this yet.