Pork Futures: Most Hogs Rise
CHICAGO - Except spot October Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle that settled firm after the 1 p.m. EDT expiration, other months ended lower Wednesday on cash jitters and profit-taking.Feeder cattle posted significant losses, lean hogs ended mostly firm and pork bellies settled higher.
Live cattle contracts faltered at the start as profiteers stepped in on the heels of recent board gains. December's premium to October, and compared with recent cash sales, emboldened sellers.
Also, potential buyers hugged the sidelines amid lukewarm wholesale beef movement. And, bullish traders are nervous that unprofitable calculated packer profit margins, at some point, might force processors to trim operating hours and pressure cash bids.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's midday boxed-beef wire showed choice cuts down $0.08 per hundredweight and select items were down $0.51.
A few live-basis packer bids surfaced at $91 per hundredweight versus $94 to $95 asking prices.
However, December's oversold Relative Strength Index condition helped lift the new lead month from an initial four-month low. And, February floated up from morning bottoms as funds moved some of their long December positions into February in advance of the Goldman roll.