Cattle and hogs are mostly higher early while grains started mixed and built strength as well.
Brad Kooima, Kooima Kooima Varilek, says live cattle have held chart support so far even with lower cash and cutouts but feeders are the real leaders as funds continue to buy.
Cash last week was lower at mostly $185 in the South, down $2 and $290 dressed in the North, down $3.
The cash has been lower the last couple of weeks as negotiated volumes have plummeted to only 50,000 head last week as packers were able to pull from their own formula totals.
Kooima expects cash to be steady this week.
However, there is some talk of expansion that is limiting upside in the live cattle futures as well as normal seasonal weakness in cutouts.
USDA will release its monthly Cattle on Feed Report on Friday and expectations are for record on feed numbers so that may also be a headwind for the cattle market this week.
Kooima also expects by the end of the year the cattle market will catch hold on tighter numbers and move higher, especially if winter weather sets in an helps put a lid on weights.
Lean hog futures are slightly higher after a lower week and a reversal off contract highs.
However, the funds are still record long so its difficult to say if last week was just a healthy correction or a top in the market.
Grains started mixed with row crops lower and wheat higher putting in war premium with an escalation of fighting in the Black Sea and responding to a weaker dollar.
The strength in wheat is helping to pull row crops back higher and there was some soybean export demand that surfaced this morning.
Private exporters reported 30,000 metric tons of soybean oil for delivery to India, 7.6 mb soybeans for delivery to Mexico, 135,000 mt of soybean cake and meal to the Philippines. All for 2024/2025 marketing year.
However, Kooima says the markets are still rangebound and he expects that trend to continue through the inaguaration.
After that grains may sell off in fear of increased tariffs and a trade war.
