DTN Closing Livestock Comment 05/18 16:12

DTN Closing Livestock Comment 05/18 16:12 Beef Futures Close Week in the Red The cattle complex tried to stabilize early Friday, but late-selling caused both live and feeder contracts to settle significantly lower. Lean hog contracts also closed lower, pressured by long liquidation and late-week profit-taking. By John Harrington DTN Livestock Analyst GENERAL COMMENTS The cash cattle market was not tested Friday following sharply lower business on Tuesday through Thursday. For the week, live prices slumped as much as $10 to $12 lower than last week. The National hog base closed off $0.16 compared with the prior day settlement ($59-$66, weighted average $64.89). From Friday to Friday, livestock futures scored the following changes: Jun LC off $5.22; Aug LC off $6.20; May FC off $6.20; Aug FC off $6.28; Jun LH off $0.40; Jul LH up $0.28. Corn futures staged an impressive rally to close the week advancing by 7 cents and more. This market was supported by rumors of a new deal between the U.S. and China, lower estimates of the Brazilian corn crop, and a large wave of commercial-buying. The stock market closed narrowly mixed with the Dow up 1 point and the Nasdaq down by 28.