DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 04/02 06:18

DTN Early Word Livestock Comments 04/02 06:18 Cattle Futures May See Follow-Through Selling Tuesday The cattle complex fell apart Monday after the release of the news that a human who worked with the cattle of an infected dairy herd tested positive for HPAI. The market dropped quickly as selling escalated and stops were triggered. Hogs were able to shun the news as pork could be a beneficiary if beef consumption is impacted. Strong cutouts provided solid support. Robin Schmahl DTN Contributing Analyst Cattle: Lower Futures: Lower Live Equiv: $226.80 -$0.84* Hogs: Higher Futures: Higher Lean Equiv: $102.58 +$2.95** *Based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue. (The Live Cattle Equiv. Index has been updated to depict recent changes in live cattle weights and grading percentages.) ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue. GENERAL COMMENTS: Cattle contracts spent the early part of Monday in positive territory but began to see weakness in the potential of lower cash again this week. However, once the news broke that a human who worked with dairy cattle in Texas was confirmed to have avian flu (HPAI), the market broke hard, sending live cattle futures as much as $6.10 lower and feeder cattle futures as much as $7.50 lower. This sent futures to their lowest level since early January. This was a knee-jerk reaction, but one that did substantial chart damage. There have been a few previous cases of humans contracting avian flu, but they have not made the news. The symptoms are like a cold or flu that we all deal with at times. It has not been an issue with all the poultry infections over the recent years. However, the news media latched on to this due to the recent discovery of HPAI in dairy cattle for the first time. Cooler heads may prevail, but it will be difficult to regain the losses of Monday and the past week. Boxed beef prices were lower with choice down $0.98 and select down $1.64.