Rumors of New World Screwworm Caused Cattle Contracts to Close Lower

GENERAL COMMENTS:

It was a mixed day for the livestock complex, as the lean hog contracts closed higher while the cattle contracts closed lower. Some light cash cattle trade was noted in Texas at $255, but not enough cattle traded to say that any trend has been established. July corn is down 3 1/2 cents per bushel and July soybean meal is down $0.30. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 228.91 points and the NASDAQ is up 7.09 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

The live cattle contracts ended the day lower as fearmongering stole any hope that the market had to trade higher, as traders remain on edge as cases of New World screwworm (NWS) continue to surface. However, the rumor that was circulating around that a case of NWS had been detected just one mile from the U.S. border was false, the USDA confirmed. Nevertheless, the market’s sole focus today was on NWS, which is why the contracts sank lower. June live cattle closed $1.32 lower at $247.67, August live cattle closed $0.95 lower at $239.65 and October live cattle closed $1.45 lower at $230.87. Some light cash cattle trade was noted in Texas at $255, but not enough cattle traded to say that any sort of trend has been established. Tuesday’s slaughter is estimated at 110,000 head — 1,000 head less than a week ago and 9,000 head less than a year ago.

Boxed beef prices closed higher: choice up $1.24 (394.07) and select up $1.72 ($384.81) with a movement of 115 loads (79.67 loads of choice, 16.68 loads of select, zero loads of trim and 19.12 loads of ground beef).

WEDNESDAY’S CATTLE CALL: Lower. With NWS taking center stage again this week, it’s likely that the market will trade lower.

FEEDER CATTLE:

Likewise, the feeder cattle complex took one look at the live cattle market’s position today and deemed its weaker trend was a sizeable enough reason as to why the feeder cattle contracts could trade lower too. I think it was especially interesting to note that even the orders in sale barns have been affected by the board’s volatility. August feeders closed $3.12 lower at $348.42, September feeders closed $3.55 lower at $345.12 and October feeders closed $3.55 lower at $341.75. At the Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, compared to their last sale two weeks ago, feeder steers and heifers traded mostly $5.00 to $15.00 lower, with instances as much as $20.00 lower. Steer and heifer calves sold $10.00 to $20.00 lower. The sale report distinctly noted that, “with the continued extreme ups and downs in the cattle futures, demand has been reduced for feeder cattle because of it.” Feeder cattle supply over 600 pounds was 68%. The CME feeder cattle index 6/1/2026: down $2.88, $364.26.

LEAN HOGS:

The lean hog contracts closed higher as traders were pleased to see consumer support improve. June lean hogs closed $0.67 higher at $95.70, July lean hogs closed $1.80 higher at $101.65 and August lean hogs closed $1.37 higher at $98.97. SO long as the market continues to see greater consumer support, the contracts will likely keep scaling higher, as that’s been the missing link that traders have been desperately longing for. Hog prices are higher on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, up $1.71 with a weighted average price of $95.57 on 7,305 head. Pork cutouts total 300.08 loads with 256.59 loads of pork cuts and 43.49 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.84, $100.59. Tuesday’s slaughter is estimated at 487,000 head — 19,000 head more than a week ago and 10,000 head more than a year ago. The CME lean hog index 5/29/2026: up $0.11, $91.51.

WEDNESDAY’S HOG CALL: Steady to somewhat higher. With consumer demand picking up a bit, there’s a chance that packers could be a tick more aggressive in the cash market.

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