DTN Midday Livestock Comments          06/22 11:48

   Cattle Run Higher at the Week's Start

   Although the CME markets were closed last Friday, the cash cattle market 
still had cattle to trade and luckily cattle sold $2.00 to $5.00 higher, which 
is helping drive Monday's market higher.

ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   With the help of strong equity markets, and the fact that last week's fed 
cash cattle market traded higher, the cattle contracts are trading higher into 
Monday's noon hour. New showlists appear to be higher in all major feeding 
states. July corn is down 4 3/4 cents per bushel and July soybean meal is down 
$1.20. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 154.78 points and NASDAQ is down 
329.69 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

   I personally was worried that Friday's Cattle on Feed report was going to be 
absorbed in a bearish manner by the market, given the fact that we currently 
sit with a greater number of cattle on feed than compared to a year ago, and 
our marketings continue to dwindle. But thankfully on Friday (when the markets 
were closed), packers and feedlot managers hashed out last week's fed cash 
cattle trade and lo and behold, prices ended up being anywhere from $2.00 to 
$5.00 higher. Couple the cash cattle market's recent success with the fact that 
the equity markets are trading higher, and traders have been willing to look 
beyond last week's COF report and allow the live cattle contracts to trade 
higher. June live cattle are up $0.92 at $255.72, August live cattle are up 
$0.42 at $247.05 and October live cattle are up $0.65 at $240.62. New showlists 
appear to be higher in all major feeding states.

   Last week, both live and dressed deals waited to develop until Friday, but 
Southern live cattle traded at mostly $258 to $260, which is $2.00 to $5.00 
higher than the previous week's weighted average. Northern dressed cattle 
traded anywhere from $408 to $410, but mostly at $408, which is $3.00 higher 
than the previous week's weighted average.

   Boxed beef prices are higher: choice up $1.24 ($395.61) and select up $1.86 
($373.94) with a movement of 42 loads (28.42 loads of choice, 2.35 loads of 
select, 6.24 loads of trim and 5.18 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   The feeder cattle contracts are continuing to trade higher as the market 
feels well supported by a number of different fronts right now. August feeder 
cattle are up $3.27 at $369.87, September feeders are up $3.60 at $368.27 and 
October feeders are up $3.75 at $365.50. And as long as the live cattle 
contracts continue to rally through the day's end, it's likely that the feeder 
cattle contracts will do the same.

LEAN HOGS:

   The lean hog contracts, meanwhile, are trading mixed as traders would like 
to think with midday pork cutout values higher that the contracts should be 
able to scale higher too, but with the contracts at resistance levels, traders 
are remaining cautious. Not to mention, demand has been fickle in recent weeks 
and traders want to see more than one single day's worth of higher prices 
before they become too bullish. July lean hogs are down $0.07 at $94.90, August 
lean hogs are up $0.47 at $97.20 and October lean hogs are up $0.27 at $81.60. 
The projected lean hog index for 6/19/2026 is down $0.67 at $91.77 and the 
actual index for 6/17/2026 is up $0.01 at $92.44. Hog prices on the Daily 
Direct Morning Hog Report are not available because of confidentiality. 
However, we can see that only 195 head have traded and that the market's 
five-day rolling average now sits at $96.65. Pork cutouts total 133.55 loads 
with 116.00 loads of pork cuts and 17.55 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up 
$0.21, $96.98.

   **

   NOTE:

   The cattle complex has seen record-high prices in the last year. But it's 
also been saddled with record-high risk and volatility, among many other 
challenges. To better understand these cattle market challenges, join DTN 
Livestock Analyst ShayLe Stewart for the inaugural Beef Industry Exchange 
webinar hosted by Senior Livestock Editor Jennifer Carrico at 9 a.m. CDT on 
June 24. 

   In addition to ShayLe's cattle market update, DTN Ag Meteorologist John 
Baranick shares how variability and a building Super El Nino might save or doom 
U.S. pastures. Due to widespread drought conditions across the U.S., cow-calf 
producers may be considering a reduction of the herd. To prepare for this, 
University of Nebraska Lincoln Beef Systems Extension Educator Aaron Berger 
shares different strategies to set up cow herd rebuilding when it rains again. 
Register for the free webinar today: 
https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdtn.link%2FBee
fIndustryExchange&data=05%7C02%7CCheri.Zagurski%40dtn.com%7C807fda3c4c664a981f56
08dec80477bd%7Cd945da26f07f451496e79b8f78a743d0%7C0%7C0%7C639168118702874444%7CU
nknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiI
sIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=CiVrIWXNYNj1JBgWhdg1CI8GUKR
aMhxlgI4NiJV2SwE%3D&reserved=0

   **

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




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