Lean hog futures fall for fourth straight session - CME
Cattle futures hit contract highs on tight supply
13 April 2026
1 minute read
By: Live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) set life-of-contract highs on Friday, supported by strong cash markets, tight cattle supplies and continued consumer demand for beef, Reuters reported, citing analysts.
Most-active CME June live cattle settled up 2 cents at 249.200 cents per pound after posting a contract high at 249.950 cents. The thinly traded April contract reached 252.250 cents, an all-time high on a continuous chart of the front live cattle contract, before settling at 251.775 cents.
CME May feeder cattle futures rose 1.925 cents to finish at 372.350 cents per pound.
Slaughter-ready cattle traded in Iowa at $250 per hundredweight, traders said on Friday, up about $5 from the previous week's cash price. Meat packers have been paying high prices for cattle due to expectations for a seasonal upswing in beef demand as grilling season approaches, analysts said this week.
Also, packer margins turned positive in late March, stoking demand for cattle, although margins fell back into negative territory this week.
Meanwhile, consumer demand for beef has remained robust, despite elevated prices.
"Even though consumers should be backing away from beef - they should be financially stressed - there is no sign of it yet," said Rich Nelson, chief strategist for Allendale Inc.
US consumer sentiment plunged to a record low in early April and consumers anticipated a surge in inflation in the next 12 months, a monthly survey showed.
Wholesale beef prices ticked lower. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported choice beef cuts at $380.90 on Friday afternoon, down 19 cents from Thursday.
CME lean hog futures closed lower for a fourth straight session, with the benchmark June contract settling down 0.400 cent at 103.725 cents per pound.
The USDA quoted the wholesale pork carcass cutout at $98.70 per cwt late on Friday, up $1.32 from Thursday.
