DTN Closing Livestock Comment 09/15 16:15
15 Sep 2015
DTN Closing Livestock Comment 09/15 16:15 Discounted Lean Hog Futures Bolt Sharply Higher Lean hog contracts closed with mostly triple-digit gains, jazzed by aggressive short covering and the premium status of the early fall cash trade. The cattle complex settled significantly lower with feeder contracts suffering more than twice the loss of their live counterparts. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS: Cash cattle traders barely moved a muscle through the day as bids and asking prices remained essentially hidden. A few Southern steers and heifers were priced around $143-$144, but no one really showed any interest in potential business. According to the closing report, the Iowa hog base is $2.17 higher compared with the Prior Day settlement ($58.00-$70.00, weighted average $68.60). Corn issues settled generally 3 cents lower in slow volume. Weakness was blamed on profit taking and a stronger dollar. The stock market closed more than 1% higher as investors positively positioned leading into the Federal Reserve's key meeting. The Dow ended 228 points higher with the Nasdaq better by 54.