Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rose on Tuesday on bargain-buying, a day after the October contract hit a 3-1/2 week low, traders said.
A setback in prices for corn, a key feedgrain, added support.
But rallies were capped by broad declines in commodities, including crude oil, and Wall Street equity markets tied to fears that rising U.S. and European interest rates will slow the economy, curbing consumer demand for fuel, beef and other goods.
Benchmark CME October live cattle futures settled up 0.925 cent at 143.825 cents/lb., a day after sliding to 142.65, the contract’s lowest since Aug. 3 (all figures US$). October feeder cattle rose 2.2 cents to close at 183.275 cents.
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Traders were waiting to see where cash cattle would trade. Next week will be shortened by the Sept. 5 Labour Day holiday, a factor that could limit meat packers’ immediate needs for cattle. But feedlots in Kansas and Texas were asking $144 per hundredweight (cwt) for market-ready cattle, traders said, up about $2 from last week.
In the U.S. wholesale beef market, choice cuts fell $3.25, to $259.79/cwt, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Select cuts fell $3.07, to $239.68/cwt.
CME lean hog futures rose for a second straight session. Most-active October lean hogs settled up 1.35 cents at 93.6 cents/lb. and December hogs ended up 0.9 cent at 85.5 cents/lb.
Wholesale pork prices declined. USDA reported the pork carcass value at $102.16/cwt on Tuesday afternoon, down 41 cents from Monday.
— Julie Ingwersen is a Reuters commodities correspondent in Chicago.
