Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange livestock futures slumped on Monday as traders reduced risk in the face of rising coronavirus cases, brokers said.
Selling hit a range of markets including crude oil, which lost more than three per cent, and U.S. stocks.
“The risk-off trade is back today,” said Dan Norcini, an independent livestock trader.
Most-active February hog futures settled down 1.325 cents at 79.475 cents/lb., while April hogs ended down 1.275 cents at 83.5 cents (all figures US$).
Traders are waiting for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to issue a quarterly Hogs and Pigs report and monthly Cattle on Feed report on Dec. 23.
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U.S. livestock: Cattle futures slip on demand concerns as beef prices turn lower
Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures dipped on Tuesday as gains fueled by tight cattle supplies and strong demand faded amid concerns that high beef prices and cooling weather could soon affect retail meat sales, analysts said.
USDA quoted the U.S. pork cutout at $86.49 per hundredweight (cwt), up 67 cents from Friday.
In the beef markets, CME February live cattle futures settled down 0.45 cent at 135.975 cents/lb. CME March feeder cattle fell 1.2 cents to 160.5 cents.
Wholesale boxed beef prices were mixed, with choice cuts down 63 cents at $262.38/cwt and select cuts up $2.39 at $250.67, according to USDA.
Analysts said there were some concerns that U.S. cattle would be affected by a freakish storm that brought “Dust Bowl” conditions and gusts of more than 160 km/h to parts of the Plains last week, reminiscent of the U.S. drought years of the 1930s.
In Canada, authorities reported a case of atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in an 8-1/2-year-old beef cow in Alberta, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) said Monday.
The carcass did not enter the human food or animal feed chains, the Paris-based OIE said, citing a report Friday from Canadian authorities.
— Reporting for Reuters by Tom Polansek in Chicago; additional reporting by Julie Ingwersen.
