Pork Futures: Hogs Collapse
CHICAGO - Chicago Mercantile Exchange hogs closed sharply lower Friday, and April through June dropped to new contract lows, on cash hog price pressure, fund liquidation and sell stops.
15 March 2008
2 minute read
Pork bellies finished lower, live cattle ended mainly weak and feeder cattle settled generally firm.
Lean hogs stumbled out of the gate on follow-through weakness and fading pork cutout values. Prospective longs observed the proceedings from a distance because of spot-April and nearby-June premiums' to CME's hog index and reduced cash price expectations.
What's more, back-month bullish hog speculators "kept their powder dry" despite modest electronic-Chicago Board of Trade corn firmness.
Spot-April and nearby-June selling increased after both contracts immediately tripped sell stops which caught the eye of funds. Also, spot-month losses mounted after midday direct cash hog markets confirmed that packers have on-hand inventory needs well in hand.
