

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures rally
Hog futures slide to new lows; USDA cattle report seen as neutral
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures rose on Friday in a bout of technical trading, as cash prices remained relatively steady and investors positioned themselves ahead of the monthly U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report, traders said. On the pork side, a second day of volatile trading across lean hog futures resulted […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures up ahead of USDA feedlot data
Hog futures mixed; U.S. pork export sales up on week
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rose on Thursday on technical buying and position-squaring ahead of a monthly U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report that is expected to show fewer cattle in U.S. feedlots compared to a year ago, traders said. CME June live cattle settled up 0.7 cent at 165.525 […] Read more

More than half of world’s large lakes drying up, study finds
Gains in Great Lakes, Lake Winnipeg come from runoff, rainfall
London | Reuters — More than half of the world’s large lakes and reservoirs have shrunk since the early 1990s, chiefly because of climate change, intensifying concerns about water for agriculture, hydropower and human consumption, a study published on Thursday found. A team of international researchers reported that some of the world’s most important freshwater […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs pressured by cheap cash prices, softer pork prices
Nearby live cattle higher, feeder cattle down
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures declined on Wednesday, snapping a three-session advance, pressured by a discounted cash hog market and declining wholesale pork prices, traders said. CME June lean hog futures settled down 2.325 cents at 84.875 cents/lb. and the July contract fell 2.575 cents to end at 85.55 cents […] Read more

Prairie Forecast: Above-average temperatures to continue
Covering the period from May 17 to 24, 2023
The upper ridge that has been in place over much of B.C. and Alberta over the last few weeks looks to remain in place, at least for a few more days. There are some indications of a shift in the overall weather pattern towards a warm and wetter setup. As predicted, an area of low […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Live cattle inch lower, nearby hogs end higher
'Cutouts slowly start to lose ground here'
Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange slipped on Tuesday, pressured by softening wholesale beef prices and a lack of bullish news, traders said. Cash cattle trade was quiet, leaving some traders to focus on beef prices. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) priced choice cuts of beef on Tuesday […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs up two per cent on firm cash markets, short-covering
June live cattle down, later months up
Chicago | Reuters — Lean hog futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange rose more than two per cent on Monday on signs of firming cash hog values, rising wholesale pork prices and short-covering. CME June lean hog futures settled up 2.05 cents at 86.15 cents/lb., with the July contract up 2.175 cents at 87.5 cents […] Read more

Little chance for rain on Alberta wildfires
Coming cold front more windy than rainy in nature, Environment Canada says
Ottawa | Reuters — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited Alberta on Monday as raging wildfires prompted mass evacuations and reduced energy production in Canada’s main oil-producing province, where meteorologists expect virtually no rain for 10 days or so. In Edmonton, Trudeau received an update on firefighting efforts by Canadian soldiers sent to help provincial firefighting […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures rise on falling corn prices
Chicago lean hogs also firm
Chicago | Reuters — CME Group cattle futures contracts rallied on Friday as a government forecast for a record-large U.S. corn harvest raised expectations that feeding costs will weaken as the supply base rises. Hog futures ended firm on signs of improving values in the cash market, traders said. Most actively traded June lean hog […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Hog futures fall on weak export data
CME cattle futures mixed
Chicago | Reuters — CME Group hog futures fell on Thursday on poor export demand for pork, traders said. Cattle futures were mixed, with live cattle easing on weakening trades in the cash market. Feeder cattle contracts were supported by falling corn prices. The U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday morning that beef export sales […] Read more