CattleLink Market View

Live cattle: The cattle complex traded mostly sideways throughout the week until Friday, when mass liquidation ahead of the three-day weekend hit the market, and panic quickly settled into the market when rumors that New World screwworm had been detected in the United States broke. To the best of our knowledge, the rumor isn’t true. Throughout the week, Southern live cattle traded at $233, which is mostly steady with last week’s weighted average, and Northern dressed cattle traded at $365, which is also mostly steady with last week’s weighted average. 

Feeder cattle: Much like the live cattle complex, the feeder cattle contracts traded sideways throughout the week but closed sharply lower Friday afternoon as false news rattled the market to its core.

Lean hogs: The live cattle complex gained substantial ground throughout the week, as traders remained eager to support the complex. The slight uptick in pork demand helped them accomplish a sizeable rally, as February lean hogs gained $2.98 throughout the week, and April lean hogs jumped $3.43 throughout the week. 

Corn: March corn plunged 21 cents this past week to finish at $4.24 3/4, pressured by record yield, production and December stocks on the January USDA report. 

Soybean Meal: March meal futures also fell hard, dropping $13.70 to finish the week at $290, pressured by the sharp fall in soybeans and lower exports on Monday’s USDA report.