DTN Midday Livestock Comments 11/23 11:51

DTN Midday Livestock Comments 11/23 11:51 Cash Cattle Prices Gain Another $3.00 to $4.00 It may be the day before Thanksgiving, but feedlots are keeping their eye on the ball and advancing the cash market anyway. ShayLe Stewart DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS: The livestock complex is trending lower into Wednesday's afternoon as the market isn't seeing much interest from traders. The cash cattle market has performed extremely well, however, as prices have jumped $3.00 to $4.00 higher compared to last week's weighted average. December corn is up 3 3/4 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is up $1.40. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 13.17 points. LIVE CATTLE: It's a glorious day for the cash cattle market as feedlots have again been rewarded for their patience. There's been a light movement in the North at $245 dressed, which is $3.00 higher than last week's weighted average. Some cattle have traded in the South for $154 to $155, which is roughly $4.00 higher than last week's weighted average. This week's cash cattle market shows just how important it is for cattlemen to stay engaged in the marketplace even during the holidays because you never know when prices are going to be advanced higher. With packers continuing to run aggressive processing speeds and front-end supplies of market-ready cattle thin, packers had to jump in and support the market even though it's a holiday week. It's somewhat disappointing to see that the futures complex isn't rallying alongside the cash cattle market, as one would think that this development is just the fundamental support that traders were after. More likely than not, Wednesday's unenthusiastic trade throughout the futures complex stems from the fact that the market's only being thinly traded as some participants have already stepped out the door for a long weekend. December live cattle are down $0.20 at $153.60, February live cattle are down $0.92 at $155.50 and April live cattle are down $0.77 at $159.12. Boxed beef prices are mixed: choice down $3.22 ($253.41) and select up $0.33 ($234.51) with a movement of 85 loads (47.83 loads of choice, 7.25 loads of select, 20.32 loads of trim and 10.02. FEEDER CATTLE: Even the slightest advancement in the corn sector is enough to push feeders lower even as the cash cattle market charges higher. As the market approaches the noon hour, the nearby corn contracts are trending $0.02 to $0.03 higher which is just enough pressure to send feeders crashing lower. January feeders are down $1.97 at $179.70, March feeders are down $1.80 at $182.77 and April feeders are down $1.72 at $186.20. Unless the rally in the grain complex subsides, it's not likely that the feeder cattle market will turn around ahead of closing as its market is thinly traded and traders could be stepping out early for Thanksgiving festivities. LEAN HOGS: The lean hog complex is keeping with its mundane sideways chop as Wednesday's noon hour approaches. The cash hog market could see some more interest throughout Wednesday's market as packers will likely be absent from the market on Friday. Nevertheless, the market isn't seeing much interest as will likely close with this same unenergetic tone. December lean hogs are up $0.25 at $84.50, February lean hogs are down $0.47 at $89.60 and April lean hogs are down $0.37 at $95.17. The projected lean hog index for Nov. 22 is down $0.37 at $86.17, and the actual index for Nov. 21 is down $0.43 at $86.54. Hog prices are lower on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, down $0.11 with a weighted average of $81.95, ranging from $81.00 to $87.50 on 3,328 head and a five-day rolling average of $82.15. Pork cutouts total 194.22 loads with 171.21 loads of pork cuts and 23.01 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $1.55, $89.75. ShayLe Stewart can be reached at [email protected] ** Cattlemen are eager for supply and demand mechanics to swing their way, but the market isn't completely free of hurdles as bearish concerns about the U.S. and global economies loom. Hear DTN Livestock Analyst ShayLe Stewart's thoughts on the 2023 cattle market at the all-virtual DTN Ag Summit on Dec. 12-13. Full details available at http://www.dtn.com/agsummit (c) Copyright 2022 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.