CME February 2021 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hog futures gain on strong pork demand

Weak beef exports drag on live cattle futures

Chicago | Reuters — Lean hog futures gained on Monday as demand for pork keeps pace with strong production, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s benchmark February lean hog futures contract settled 1.325 cents higher at 68.575 cents/lb. (all figures US$). “Demand must be good,” said Alan Brugler, president of Brugler Marketing. “Cold storage stocks continue […] Read more

(Glacier FarmMedia Network photo)

No BRM breakthrough reached at ministers’ meeting

AgMins fail to find solution to business risk management program woes

No consensus on changes to business risk managements (BRM) programming was reached during the latest round of federal-provincial-territorial agriculture ministers’ meetings. After the meetings ended Friday, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau explained Ottawa was willing to maintain the current cost sharing of the programs at a 60-40 split between her government and the provinces. Bibeau’s […] Read more


CME February 2021 live cattle with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures trim as traders weigh weak exports

Lean hogs down with pork export figures

Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures fell on Friday on profit-taking during a shortened holiday-trading day, while less-than-stellar weekly beef exports added pressure to livestock futures overall, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange February live cattle futures fell for the first time in the past five trading sessions, ending the day down 0.925 cent at […] Read more

Beef is on display at a Walmart in Beijing on Sept. 23, 2019. (File photo: Reuters/Tingshu Wang)

China’s coronavirus testing chokes beef trade

Additional inspections, disinfections costly for importers

Beijing | Reuters — In a supermarket in downtown Beijing, refrigerator shelves normally filled with steak from around the world sit empty as tougher testing for the novel coronavirus creates supply bottlenecks and raises prices for importers. Fresh supplies of beef won’t arrive for days, a salesman at the Suning.com-owned Carrefour outlet told Reuters — […] Read more


CME February 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (black line) and CME January 2021 feeder cattle (red line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle up on cash market optimism, beef demand

Hogs up ahead of USDA exports report

Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures rose on Wednesday for a fourth straight session, climbing ahead of Thursday’s U.S. Thanksgiving holiday as strong packer margins fed expectations of improving cash cattle prices over the next few weeks, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange February live cattle futures settled up 0.225 cent at 114.175 cents/lb. (all […] Read more

CME February 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (pink line) and CME January 2021 feeder cattle (dark red line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures follow beef prices, Dow higher

Chicago lean hogs end mixed

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures closed higher on Tuesday for a third straight session, lifted by surging wholesale beef prices and optimism that coronavirus vaccines could trigger an economic recovery, bolstering demand for meat, traders said. Wall Street’s Dow Jones industrial average hit a record high above 30,000 on upbeat COVID-19 vaccine news, […] Read more



CME February 2021 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures up two per cent

U.S. feedlot data, beef prices supportive

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures closed higher on Monday, buoyed by Friday’s supportive monthly Cattle on Feed report, rising wholesale beef prices and strength on Wall Street tied to hopes for a COVID-19 vaccine, traders said. “All of the above (suggest) optimism for the meat market,” said Jason Roose, analyst and broker with […] Read more



(Philpell/iStock/Getty Images)

Britain, Canada agree on post-Brexit rollover trade deal

Tailor-made comprehensive pact expected to follow

London/Toronto | Reuters — Britain and Canada struck a rollover trade deal on Saturday to protect the flow of almost $35 billion-worth of goods and services between them after Brexit, and vowed to start talks on a bespoke agreement next year. As Britain prepares to end its transition out of the European Union on Dec. […] Read more