DTN Midday Livestock Comments          03/18 11:41

   Livestock Complex Trades Weaker Into Wednesday's Noon Hour 

   The livestock complex is trading lower into Wednesday's noon hour as traders 
need greater fundamental support before they'll push the contracts any further. 

ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   The livestock complex is back to trading lower as traders yearn to see 
greater fundamental support before they advance the contracts any further. Yes, 
some bids have surfaced in Nebraska, but still no cash cattle trade has 
developed. May corn is up 7 3/4 cents per bushel and May soybean meal is up 
$4.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 395.57 points and NASDAQ is 
down 131.01 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

   After trading higher over the last two days, the live cattle complex is 
trading lower into Wednesday's noon hour as the market longs to see affirming 
fundamental support before it will likely push the contracts any higher. April 
live cattle are down $0.47 at $234.75, June live cattle are down $0.40 at 
$233.30 and August live cattle are down $0.27 at $231.05. Some bids have 
surfaced in Nebraska at $232 live and $368 dressed -- but at this point no 
cattle have traded. Asking prices are noted in Texas at $238 to $240 but are 
not fully established in other regions. Trade will likely be delayed for 
another day or two and, depending on how confident feedlot managers feel, trade 
could be delayed until after Friday's Cattle on Feed report.

   Boxed beef prices are lower: choice down $0.78 ($402.53) and select down 
$0.19 ($396.53) with a movement of 49 loads (26.55 loads of choice, 7.47 loads 
of select, 4.64 loads of trim and 9.85 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   To no one's surprise, the feeder cattle complex is also trading lower as the 
market continues to mirror the actions of the live cattle market. March feeders 
are down $1.65 at $358.15, April feeders are down $1.72 at $353.07 and May 
feeders are down $1.70 at $348.92. Even though demand was noticeably stronger 
in sales on Tuesday, the market will likely continue to respect the direction 
of the live cattle market despite the fact that buyers are being more 
aggressive in the countryside as traders don't want to overdo anything.

LEAN HOGS:

   Although pork cutout values are up slightly, the lean hog complex continues 
to trade lower as traders yearn to see greater fundamental demand. April lean 
hogs are down $0.15 at $93.57, June lean hogs are down $0.50 at $107.27 and 
July lean hogs are down $0.25 at $109.55. The market seems to be establishing a 
bottom for its current move, but it doesn't possess enough support to rally 
beyond a steady/mildly lower position. The projected CME Lean Hog Index is 
delayed from the source. Hog prices are unavailable on the Daily Direct Morning 
Hog Report because of confidentiality. However, we can see 5,185 head have 
traded and the market's five-day rolling average now sits at $91.36. Pork 
cutouts total 162.90 loads with 135.10 loads of pork cuts and 27.80 loads of 
trim. Pork cutout values: up $0.07, $99.96.

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




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