DTN Midday Livestock Comments 12/13 11:08

DTN Midday Livestock Comments 12/13 11:08 Stronger Tones Dominate the Livestock Complex Midday Tuesday Even with corn prices rallying midday Tuesday, the entire livestock complex is fronting higher prices as traders are giving the market more attention than they have in days past. ShayLe Stewart DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS: The entire livestock complex is trading higher into Tuesday's afternoon as the market welcomes interest from traders. If boxed beef prices can close higher Tuesday afternoon, then the momentum in the cattle complex could continue well into Wednesday and potentially aid in the support of higher cash cattle trade. March corn is up 4 1/2 cents per bushel and January soybean meal is up $5.40. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 174.22 points. LIVE CATTLE: The live cattle complex gapped open to start the day off as the market was finally able to trade the amazing close that choice boxed beef prices made Monday afternoon. If the complex continues to see that kind of interest in boxed beef prices, then the market stands an excellent chance at keeping cash cattle prices at least steady, if not advancing the market by a $1.00 or $2.00. Some early asking prices have been noted in the South for $157 to $158 but are still not established in the North. With packers buying for the holiday-shortened weeks around Christmas, it's not likely that they'll procure an exuberant volume of cattle, but with front-end supplies as thin as they are, they'll have to participate in the market to some degree. December live cattle are up $0.57 at $154.97, February live cattle are up $0.52 at $156.65 and April live cattle are up $0.42 at $160.30. Boxed beef prices are mixed: choice up $3.31 ($260.33) and select down $0.78 ($224.90) with a movement of 64 loads (37.16 loads of choice, 17.24 loads of select, zero loads of trim and 10.08 loads of ground beef). FEEDER CATTLE: The feeder cattle contracts are trading higher despite rallying with the corn market. Heading into the noon hour Tuesday, corn prices are trending $0.04 to $0.08 higher -- but at this point, that hasn't been enough of a detriment to debunk the momentum in the feeder cattle market. The feeder cattle complex is looking to its other cattle counterpart, and with the live cattle market posting a modest 5- to 57-point rally, it can somewhat breathe easily. If boxed beef prices close higher Tuesday and the cash cattle market is able to keep prices at least steady, that will aid more confidence to both the live cattle and feeder cattle contracts. January feeders are up $0.05 at $183.70, March feeders are up $0.10 at $185.32 and April feeders are up $0.22 at $188.87. LEAN HOGS: The lean hog complex has changed its tune since Monday's close as the market has confidently traded higher throughout Tuesday morning. Seeming to find technical support around the $84.00 threshold, the market is hoping that its fundamentals (cash prices and cutouts) see stronger demand Tuesday afternoon, which could enable the market to continue to trade higher into the middle of the week. February lean hogs are up $1.60 at $85.30, April lean hogs are up $1.17 at $91.82 and June lean hogs are up $0.95 at $105.57. It's nice to see morning pork cutout values up substantially, but until we see how the afternoon pork cutout values close, we can't get too excited. The projected lean hog index for Dec. 12 is up $0.15 at $81.62 and the actual index for Dec. 9 is down $0.52 at $81.47. Hog prices are lower on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, down $0.15 with a weighted average of $81.63, ranging from $74.00 to $83.00 on 6,607 head and a five-day rolling average of $83.47. Pork cutouts total 206.58 loads with 188.50 loads of pork cuts and 18.08 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $9.22, $96.16. ShayLe Stewart can be reached [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.