DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 05/13 06:21

DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 05/13 06:21 Futures May Bounce Into Weekend It has not been a good week for the livestock complex. Concern over demand seems to be the overriding factor in the market. Cattle may face more pressure next week as packers may not be aggressive. Hog futures continue to fall off a cliff as buyers of futures keep getting run over and fundamental support remains elusive. Robin Schmahl DTN Contributing Analyst Cattle: Steady Futures: Mixed Live Equiv: $193.39 +$1.51* Hogs: Lower Futures: Mixed Lean Equiv: $106.05 -$0.89** *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: Cattle futures have struggled all week with June live cattle futures closing at the lowest level since Oct. 6, 2021. The anticipation of higher beef prices due to strong demand and lower cattle supplies ran out of steam in February. Liquidation of cattle due to the ongoing drought did not impact supplies as much as anticipated according to the Cattle on Feed reports. Inflation heated up as well with fears of demand slowing further. June cattle hold a large discount to cash with the market showing no sign of reducing that discount at the present time. Steady cash should be viewed as a victory this week, but there is already concern whether that can be repeated next week. Boxed beef prices were higher with choice up $2.12 and select up $2.18. USDA raised beef production for the year and raised the average beef price on the WASDE report, but that had little impact on trading.