Cattle futures mixed as profit-taking, raid rumours weigh - CME
Hog prices hold firm on unexpected post-holiday strength
11 June 2025
2 minute read
By: Live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) ended mixed on Tuesday with the most-active August contract down on profit-taking, while strong cash cattle markets and historically high beef prices underpinned the market, Reuters reported, citing analysts.
Rumors of immigration raids in Nebraska pressured futures at times, brokers said, by fueling ideas that beef packing operations could slow, potentially backing up cattle supplies.
Reuters was unable to confirm that raids occurred at major Nebraska beef packing plants but local news reports said US immigration officials raided Glann Valley Foods in Omaha, a family-owned meat producer.
"What's true and what's rumour remains unclear," Cassie Fish, an analyst and industry expert, said on The Beef blog, noting that cattle futures were hovering near all-time highs. "With futures overbought, anything at any time can inspire selling, which is the case today," Fish wrote.
Most-active CME August live cattle futures settled down 1.050 cents at 218.200 cents per pound and stayed below a contract high hit on Monday, but all other contract months set fresh highs. Feeder cattle futures notched contract highs across the board, with benchmark August feeders closing up 1.5 cents at 313.150 cents per pound.
Cash cattle traded lightly in Texas at $235 per hundredweight, brokers said, steady with the highest trades last week in the southern Plains.
Wholesale beef prices ratcheted upward, with choice cuts priced at $371.76 per cwt on Tuesday afternoon, up $4.51 from Monday, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture. Select cuts rose 91 cents at $359.84.
CME lean hog futures closed mixed. Benchmark July hogs settled up a penny at 108.200 cents per pound after posting a contract high at 108.425 cents, while August and October hogs ended lower.
Firm cash hog prices continued to support the market.
"Cash hogs since Memorial Day have seen a bit of strength that we did not expect," said Rich Nelson, chief market strategist for Allendale Inc.
The USDA reported the pork carcass cutout on Tuesday afternoon at $110.88 per cwt, up 59 cents from Monday. Hams fell by $1.60 at $98.77 per cwt but bellies, used for bacon, rose by $4.08, at $170.55.
