Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hogs have started to shed pounds after hitting record weights recently and the trend may continue with warmer weather, underpinning prices for market-ready hogs that have slid 15 per cent in 1-1/2 months from their all-time highs. Hog weights rose to a record high 287.5 lbs. for the week of […] Read more
Weather weighs in with virus on U.S. hog weights

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle gain ahead of USDA report
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle gained modestly on Friday as investors tweaked positions before the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s cattle-on-feed report at 2 p.m. CT, traders said. Analysts expect the data to show cattle placements last month declined from April 2013 after several years of drought in parts of the U.S. […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME hog futures drop on cash price unease
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hogs closed lower on Thursday, pressured by uneasiness about cash hog price direction amid ample supplies and slim packer margins, traders said. On Thursday, packers processed 413,000 hogs, 17,000 more than last week and up 8,000 from a year ago, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said. Pork packer […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME hog futures close higher but off session tops
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures closed higher Wednesday in anticipation of tighter supplies linked to the porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv), traders said. May hogs, which expired at noon CT, settled unchanged at 112.4 cents per pound (all figures US$). June ended 0.975 cent higher at 120.575, and July up 1.5 […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cash price bounce sends CME hogs mostly higher
Chicago | Reuters — Most Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures gained on Tuesday, driven by short-covering in response to higher prices for slaughter-ready or cash hogs, traders said. Aside from the CME May hog contract, which will expire on Wednesday, remaining months gained as packers spent more for supplies to accommodate the rest of this […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME hog futures end mixed as cash prices move lower
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures closed mixed on Monday after market-ready or cash hog prices pressured nearby contracts, but the “roll” by funds supported back months, traders said. Monday afternoon’s hog price in the Iowa/Minnesota market dropped $2.42 per hundredweight (cwt) from Friday to $108.35, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cheaper corn pushes CME feeder cattle to record high
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange feeder cattle futures on Friday hit a record high, boosted as corn prices fell after the government’s bearish crop report, traders said. U.S. corn futures fell more than one per cent after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s forecast for rising global supplies. Cheaper feed could ease input costs […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME hogs end mixed as funds roll into new months
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures closed mixed on Thursday as funds sold, or rolled, the June contract and bought deferred months, traders said. Funds trading in CME’s hogs and live cattle markets shifted June long positions further back in a procedure known as the “roll” by followers of the Standard + […] Read more
PED could cut U.S. output by seven per cent in 2014: Rabobank
Chicago | Reuters — A pig virus sweeping across farms in the U.S. could cut pork production as much as seven per cent this year, a far steeper decline than the government has forecast, according to agribusiness research firm Rabobank. Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) has killed about seven million baby pigs since it was […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Fallen cash prices extend CME hogs’ losses
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures fell on Wednesday for a seventh straight session, led by lower market-ready, or cash, hog prices, traders said. The morning’s hog price in Iowa/Minnesota fell $2.41 per hundredweight (cwt) from Tuesday to $111.72, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (all figures US$). “The trade is […] Read more