Hog prices edge higher as pork market shows modest strength - CME
Cattle futures plunge on supply fears and tariff uncertainty
6 November 2025
1 minute read
By: Live cattle and feeder cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) fell their daily maximum on Wednesday, as worries about rising beef supplies triggered a flurry of technical selling and long liquidation, Reuters reported, citing analysts.
Some brokers cited uncertainty about the future of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs after US Supreme Court justices raised doubts about the legality of the policy. Reduced tariffs could lead to increased beef imports.
But others said Wednesday's sell-off had more to do with technical selling, with the benchmark CME December live cattle contract dropping below last week's multi-month lows.
"A lot of this trading is done electronically, and once you start hitting some of the trip wires, it just keeps going," said Altin Kalo, chief economist at Steiner Consulting Group.
CME December live cattle futures settled down the daily limit of 7.25 cents at 220.525 cents per pound. January feeder cattle ended down its limit of 9.25 cents at 319.975 cents per pound.
Daily limits will expand to 10.75 cents for live cattle futures and 13.75 cents for feeders for Thursday's trading session, the CME said.
Live and feeder cattle futures scaled all-time highs in mid-October, buoyed by soaring beef prices as the US cattle herd fell to its smallest size in decades after a lengthy drought. An outbreak of the screwworm parasite in Mexico prompted US officials in May to largely halt imports of Mexican feeder cattle, further tightening supplies.
But futures have since tumbled, buffeted by uncertainty after the administration of US President Donald Trump took steps to lower beef prices. Trump last month encouraged beef imports from Argentina and urged cattle ranchers to lower prices.
Traders are also nervous about prospects for reopening the US border to Mexican cattle. US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said this week that President Trump was "very focused" on reopening the border, although she was not yet ready to make a move while Mexico works to contain the screwworm outbreak.
"The very bullish zeitgeist that defined the cattle market the last several months has disintegrated over the last couple of weeks," said Doug Houghton, analyst with Brock Associates.
Hog futures closed mostly higher. Benchmark CME December lean hog futures settled up 0.675 cent at 80.600 cents per pound and February hogs ended up 0.050 cent at 80.975 cents, while deferred contracts drifted lower.
The USDA priced pork carcasses at $97.54 per cwt on Wednesday afternoon, down $1.63 from Tuesday.
