DTN Midday Livestock Comments          03/17 11:40

   Traders Continue to Help the Cattle Contracts Trade Higher

   With ample technical support, both the live cattle and feeder cattle 
contracts are trading higher.

ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   The livestock complex is mixed into Tuesday's noon hour as the cattle 
contracts continue to scale higher while the lean hog contracts are trading 
slightly lower. No developments have surfaced yet in the cash cattle market and 
likely won't until later in the week. May corn is down 1 1/2 cents per bushel 
and May soybean meal is down $1.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 
134.27 points and NASDAQ is up 89.61 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

   Again, today the live cattle complex is rallying into Tuesday's noon hour as 
trader support helps drive the complex higher. Yes, midday boxed beef prices 
are higher, but aside from that, the market hasn't found much other fundamental 
support this week. It's fully expected that later this week when the fed cash 
cattle market does begin to trade, that prices will likely be lower given the 
reduction in throughput. April live cattle are up $1.97 at $235.22, June live 
cattle are up $1.65 at $233.55 and August live cattle are up $1.60 at $231.27. 
No bids or asking prices have surfaced yet in the fed cash cattle complex, and 
it's fully assumed that trade will be delayed until later in the week. Trade 
could be potentially delayed until after Friday's Cattle on Feed report.

   Boxed beef prices are higher: choice up $1.08 ($403.74) and select up $4.49 
($399.00) with a movement of 63 loads (49.12 loads of choice, 4.15 loads of 
select, 3.25 loads of trim and 6.14 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   In keeping with perfect unison to the live cattle complex, the feeder cattle 
contracts are also trading higher. March feeders are up $3.17 at $358.62, April 
feeders are up $4.10 at $353.95 and May feeders are up $4.75 at $350.30. The 
market is comfortably trading between its 100- and 40-day moving averages, but 
as it gets closer to the resistance near the 40-day moving average, it may 
elect to chop sideways until greater fundamental support surfaces.

LEAN HOGS:

   Meanwhile the lean hog complex is more or less chopping sideways as traders 
don't possess enough support to rally the complex, but thankfully, no more 
immediate downward pressure has been felt. April lean hogs are up $0.02 at 
$93.52, June lean hogs are down $0.22 at $107.02 and July lean hogs are down 
$0.15 at $109.17. If pork cutout demand could improve, that would likely help 
traders push the market slightly higher.

   The projected lean hog index is delayed from the source. Hog prices are 
higher on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, up $6.00 with a weighted average 
price of $92.04, ranging from $86.00 to $93.00 on 3,390 head and a five-day 
rolling average of $92.21. Pork cutouts total 148.48 loads with 141.12 loads of 
pork cuts and 7.36 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $0.02, $100.42.

   ShayLe Stewart can be reached at shayle.stewart@dtn.com




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