LIVESTOCK-U.S. live cattle futures end higher on gains in cash

* CME feeders find support from lower CBOT corn
* Hog futures narrowly mixed

By Meredith Davis
CHICAGO, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange live
cattle futures closed higher in thin trading on Friday supported
by stronger cash cattle prices, traders said.
Beef packers this week paid $132 per cwt for cattle in the
U.S. Plains, up $1 from last week's trade, feedlot sources said.
U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed some sales at $133
per cwt in Nebraska, up $2 from the previous week.
Cash cattle prices have hovered at or near record levels in

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recent weeks. Longer term cash prices should find support from
the small U.S. cattle herd and high beef prices.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Friday morning
wholesale beef price, or boxed beef, was at $202.98 per cwt for
choice cuts, up 43 cents from Wednesday. Select cuts rose 8
cents to $190.28 per cwt. USDA was closed on Thursday's holiday.

"The beef market is on fire. It is going up by leaps and
bounds," said Joe Ocrant, Oak Investment Group president.
The strength in the wholesale beef price is driven by
grocers building up beef inventories after the Thanksgiving
holiday, Ocrant said.
Traders have their eyes on the 6- to 10-day weather forecast
for the U.S. Midwest and Plains regions as extreme cold and
wintry weather is expected there.
"Weather projections look extremely cold. If that is the

case we could see weight come off these animals as they come
into slaughter," said Domenic Varricchio, commodities broker at
Schwieterman, Inc.
Cattle weight gain can slow in cold weather as they eat to
stay warm rather than to gain weight.
December cattle futures settled up 0.375 cent at
133.475 cents per lb. February cattle settled up 0.150
cent at 134.250 cents.
CME feeder cattle followed live cattle futures higher. Weak
Chicago Board of Trade corn futures also lent support.
January feeder cattle settled up 0.150 cent at
165.475 cents per lb, while March settled up 0.525 cent
at 165.675.
CME livestock futures traded in truncated sessions on
Friday, closing at 12:15 p.m. CST.

CME HOGS END MIXED
CME hog futures settled narrowly mixed in light trading.
Front-month December traded at more than a 4-cent premium to
CME's lean hog index of 80.97 cents which pressured the
contract.
"That index is the biggest weight (on futures), they have to
come together in three weeks," Varricchio said.

Strength in the cash hog market lent some support to hog
futures.
Cash hog prices, as reported by the USDA in the closely
watched Iowa/Minnesota direct market, jumped $3.24 on Friday
morning to $83.24 per cwt.
Hogs in the U.S. Midwest traded steady to $1 higher as
packers booked supplies for next week, hog brokers said.
Some traders anticipate softer cash prices in coming weeks
as record heavy hogs create ample pork in the meat pipeline.
Continued concerns regarding the spread of the Porcine
Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv), a fatal piglet disease, lent
some support to deferred-month hogs. The disease could reduce
hog supplies in 2014.
December hog futures closed down 0.125 cent at
85.675 cents per lb. February hogs closed up 0.100 cent
at 90.575 cents.

(Editing by Bob Burgdorfer)