Grain and livestock markets are mixed early Monday.
Brad Kooima of Kooima Kooima Varilek says live cattle continue to see buying interest after strong cash development late last week yet keeping a watchful eye on the drop in the stock market.
Northern trade appreciated on Friday from $198 up to $202, with some $203 bids being passed on.
Dressed prices ranged from mostly $315, up $2 to as high as $320.
Southern business was $196 to $197 early in the week and shot to $198 on Friday, up $1.
As a result, live and feeder cattle futures ended $7 to $8 higher last week.
Kooima thinks cash could be steady to higher again this week because the Northern feedlots have pulled cattle ahead and so the supplies just aren’t there.
Feeder cattle futures are struggling a bit to start the week as the feeder cattle cash index is starting to weaken.
Kooima says its a result of less Northern feeder cattle being offered the lower Southern cash trade is pulling the index down and that may hold back the feeder futures.
Lean hogs have seen a recovery with relief from Mexican counter tariffs as pork is a USMCA compliant product and seems to be handling the 10% tariffs from China on U.S. pork quite well.
Kooima says he’s watching the 50% retracement level on the April futures because it will be tough resistance.
Corn futures are trying to hold early gains with strength in wheat spilling over.
Corn markets recovered nicely late in the week with the delay on Mexican tariffs and clarification that corn is also a USMCA compliant product.
China is imposing 15% tariffs on U.S. corn, wheat, cotton and chicken starting today, with 10% tariffs on pork, beef and soybeans.
Corn and wheat aren’t reacting to the news because China has not been a buyer of U.S. corn.
Meanwhile, soybeans are lower on the 10% China tariffs going into place, even though China is likely done buying from the U.S. now that the South American crop is coming on line.
Kooima says it is more likely the soybeans are seeing South American harvest pressure with a record Brazilian crop coming to market.
China has also imposed 100% tariffs on Canada in reaction to their EV tariffs and so that is having a negative impact on canola prices which in turn is weighing on soybean meal futures.
