DTN Midday Livestock Comments          08/07 11:38

   Lackadaisical Tones Take Over the Livestock Complex on Friday

   Some cleanup sales have been noted in Kansas at $235, but it's looking like 
the bulk of this week's cash cattle trade is done with. 

ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   The livestock complex is again trading mixed into midday Friday as the lean 
hog contracts are seeing their nearby contracts trade higher, but the cattle 
contracts are trading mostly lower. A few more sales have been noted in Kansas 
at $235, but otherwise the cash market looks to be mostly done trading. 
December corn is up 2 1/2 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is down 
$2.30. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 14.51 points and the NASDAQ is up 
232.99 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

   With the live cattle contracts nearing the market's resistance, its 40-day 
moving average, it comes as no real surprise that the contracts are retreating, 
as traders aren't confident that they can successfully conquer that threshold 
just yet. August live cattle are down $1.22 at $230.00, October live cattle are 
down $1.45 at $223.47 and December live cattle are down $2.02 at $222.35. 
There's been some light trade noted this morning in the South, but thus far the 
day's business has been mostly cleanup in its nature, and any trade that 
develops this afternoon will likely keep with the week's trend. For the most 
part, Northern dressed cattle have been marked at $370, which is $3.00 higher 
than last week's weighted average, but a few sales have been as high as $372. 
Southern live cattle have traded at mostly $235, which is $2.00 higher than 
last week's weighted average, but a few sales in Iowa were marked as high as 
$238 to $240.

   Boxed beef prices are higher: choice up $0.36 ($364.22) and select up $1.35 
($351.13), with a movement of 31 loads (20.95 loads of choice, 3.86 loads of 
select, zero loads of trim and 6.29 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   The nearby contracts are trading higher, but otherwise the rest of the 
feeder cattle contracts are trading lower as traders continue to move the 
feeder cattle contracts in the same direction as the live cattle market. August 
feeders are up $1.17 at $349.22, September feeders are up $0.10 at $341.67 and 
October feeders are down $0.95 at $331.00. And at this point it's likely that 
the contracts will keep with this lower trend through the afternoon's close as 
the live cattle contracts are trading lower too.

LEAN HOGS:

   The lean hog complex has found some mild support this morning as traders are 
willing to moderately support the lean hog contracts thanks to the morning's 
uptick in consumer demand. August lean hogs are up $0.02 at $95.52, October 
lean hogs are up $0.47 at $82.20 and December lean hogs are up $0.35 at $73.55. 
But given the recent decline in the futures complex, the contracts aren't up 
against any resistance pressure right now. The projected lean hog index for 
8/6/2026 is down $0.36 at $96.30 and the actual index for 8/5/2026 is down 
$0.29 at $96.66. Hog prices on the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report average 
$97.75, ranging from $92.00 to $99.50 on 1,691 head and a five-day rolling 
average of $98.90. Pork cutouts total 233.20 loads with 212.96 loads of pork 
cuts and 20.25 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $2.19, $101.45.

   ShayLe Stewart can be reached shayle.stewart@dtn.com




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