Hog futures climb on summer demand hopes - CME
Cattle futures dip as beef packers face mounting losses
29 May 2025
2 minute read
By: Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures rose on Wednesday for a second day in a row as stronger demand was anticipated with the spring/summer grilling season getting into gear following the Memorial Day holiday in the US, reported Reuters.
CME most actively traded July lean hogs rose 1.150 cents to finish at 103.30 cents per pound.
"Hogs are reacting to the strong cutout yesterday and are expecting pork demand to increase as we move into the summer months and out of spring. The pork cutout will need to continue to move higher to keep the hedge fund buying active," said Dan Norcini, an independent trader.
The pork cutout on Wednesday afternoon was weaker however, with carcasses down $1.33 to $102.40 per hundredweight (cwt) and bellies losing $5.82 to $146.37 per cwt.
Meanwhile, feeder cattle futures fell for a second day in a row and live cattle futures fell for a third consecutive day.
Most active August feeder cattle lost 2.525 cents to end at 295.625 cents per pound, and August live cattle fell 1.125 cents to 208.175 cents per pound.
Market players are expecting wholesale beef prices to break once the buying for the Father's Day holiday (June 15) in the US wraps up, said Norcini. "Packers cannot and will not keep cutting this deeply in the red forever," he said.
Beef packer margins were estimated at losses of $113.85 per head on Wednesday vs. losses of $112.05 per head on Tuesday and $124.90 per head a week ago, according to livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.com.
Wholesale values for beef were up on Wednesday afternoon. Choice cuts of boxed beef rose $3.57 to $365.42 per cwt, while select cuts rose $0.91 to $351.74 per cwt, USDA data showed.
Meanwhile, the USDA's chief veterinarian said on Wednesday that the United States will likely resume Mexican cattle imports by year-end, after a halt due to the spread in Mexico of the New World screwworm pest that can devastate livestock.
The USDA indefinitely suspended cattle imports from Mexico this month, citing the pest's northward movement.
