(TysonFoods.com)

Tyson to shut Iowa pork plant against COVID-19 outbreak

Plant handles up to 3.5 per cent of U.S. pork output

Chicago | Reuters — Tyson Foods said on Thursday it will temporarily close an Iowa pork plant due to the coronavirus pandemic, a month after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered slaughterhouses to stay open to protect the country’s food supply. Meat processors such as Tyson, WH Group’s Smithfield Foods and JBS USA temporarily closed about […] Read more


CME July 2020 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs lower on China tensions

CME live cattle futures mostly higher

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures dropped by as much as the daily trading limit on Thursday on worries that rising tensions between Washington and Beijing could limit U.S. pork purchases by China, the world’s largest pork consumer. Sino-U.S. relations have worsened as the White House has threatened China with sanctions over its […] Read more

Mexican agricultural workers queue in the early morning at the U.S.-Mexico border to enter Calexico, California from Mexicali on May 26, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Ariana Drehsler)

Farm workers cram daily into U.S.-Mexico border tunnel

Labourers line up hundreds deep for hours despite contagion risk

Mexicali | Reuters — Every night, hundreds of farm workers in Mexico crowd for hours in a cramped tunnel to a border station to reach day jobs in Imperial Valley, California, with no social distancing enforced despite coronavirus cases saturating hospitals in the region. By 2 a.m. on Tuesday, tense men and women with cloth […] Read more


CME June 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle rise on economic optimism, discount to cash prices

U.S.-China tensions keep hogs in check

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures rallied for a second straight day on Wednesday as easing coronavirus restrictions around the country bolstered optimism about the outlook for the economy and beef demand. U.S. stocks rose, with the S+P 500 closing above 3,000 for the first time since March 5, as further easing of lockdowns […] Read more

CME August 2020 feeder cattle with 10-, 20- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures follow equities higher

August feeder cattle close limit-up

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle and hog futures rallied on Tuesday in tandem with rising stock markets as optimism about developing coronavirus vaccines and the revival of business activity buoyed livestock markets battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Supportive cattle and meat supply data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture late last week showing accelerated […] Read more


CBOT July 2020 soybeans with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soybeans firm on China demand, economic optimism

Equities rally as economies reopen, dollar eases

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures firmed and soybeans posted their strongest advance in a month on Tuesday as rising equities and energy markets and a weakening U.S. dollar triggered short-covering in commodities battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Wheat followed corn and soy higher but reversed course amid forecasts for crop-boosting rains in rival […] Read more



CBOT July 2020 soybeans with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soybeans, corn fall

Wheat firms on crop concerns; Russia cuts crop outlook

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures sank 1.4 per cent to a two-week low on Thursday, pressured by concerns about falling export demand from the world’s top soy importer due to rising tensions between Beijing and Washington, traders said. “It does not take much,” said Mark Schultz, chief market analyst at Northstar Commodity. “You […] Read more

CME August 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures slip as slaughter rises

CME lean hog futures firm

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures fell on Wednesday, as cattle continue to back up, despite slaughter plants’ coming back online, traders said. CME lean hog futures firmed despite rising kill numbers, as social distancing rules in plants keep slaughter below normal rates. The nearby CME June live cattle futures contract settled down […] Read more