DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 04/05 06:04

DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 04/05 06:04 Strength Expected to Continue Beef demand is waking up with boxed beef prices showing exceptional strength. Restaurant traffic is improving as consumers feel more confident dining out. Hog prices continue to escalate, supported by strong domestic and international demand. Robin Schmahl DTN Contributing Analyst Cattle: Higher Futures: Higher Live Equiv: $187.61 +$1.91* Hogs: Higher Futures: Higher Lean Equiv: $116.10 +0.65** * based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue. (The Live Cattle Equiv. Index has been updated to depict recent changes in live cattle weights and grading percentages.) ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue GENERAL COMMENTS: The attitude of traders might be mixed Monday. Cash cattle traded higher, as expected, and maybe even a little better than expected. But the market already had premium in futures. The April contract may want to remain close to cash and may not be too anxious to push much higher as it waits for cash to catch up. However, the strength of cash last week may provide the confidence needed by traders to buy back into the market after the slight dip Thursday. Boxed beef increased significantly, indicating seasonal demand is increasing. Packers are expected to be somewhat aggressive this week as they cannot afford not to purchase cattle to meet strong demand. Restaurant traffic is again increasing. The National Restaurant Association reported about 59% of the population was eating out once per week prior to COVID-19. After the pandemic hit that number dropped to 16%. Their latest survey done in March, indicated 37% of the population is eating out once per week. This is a factor in overall beef demand. Feedlots will be looking for higher prices this week and may hold for such, knowing packers will need to be aggressive.