DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 09/03 08:39

DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 09/03 08:39 Short-Covering Expected Prior to Weekend The cattle complex was hit hard Thursday on cash disappointment as well as the upcoming holiday weekend. Lighter trading activity many times generates wider price swings. Hog futures moved to the beat of their own drum rather than succumbing to the pressure of cattle. Robin Schmahl DTN Contributing Analyst Cattle: Steady Futures: Higher Live Equiv: $246.92 -$0.81* Hogs: Steady Futures: Higher Lean Equiv: $116.82 +$2.73** * 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: Live cattle succumbed to spillover pressure from feeder cattle Thursday. September feeder cattle closed a chart gap that remained from July 22 as price broke through support. Continued weakness of boxed beef is one factor causing the pressure with choice cuts down $0.53 and select cuts down $2.60. However, the largest influence may be the inability of cash to trade higher. Cash trade was still rather light Thursday, showing little improvement from the previous week. The weakness of futures this week does not provide incentive for packers to bid higher. However, the recent weakness of grain prices may cause feedlots to hold through the holiday weekend in hopes that demand will remain strong and beef prices will hold.