Cattle futures rise on tight supply and firm cash prices - CME
Hog futures hit lowest level since December
20 May 2026
1 minute read
By: Feeder cattle futures ran higher on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) on Tuesday in a recovery from losses in the previous session, while live cattle prices also advanced, reported Reuters.
Strong cash prices continued to support futures at a time when US cattle supplies are historically tight, analysts said. They added that futures looked too low compared to cash prices, which climbed to $265 per cwt last week.
Cattle traded in the cash market on Tuesday for $264 per cwt in Nebraska and Iowa, said Don Roose, president of US Commodities.
"The futures can't go down if the cash holds steady to higher," Roose said.
CME June live cattle futures finished up 1.175 cents at 254.55 cents per pound, near a contract high.
CME August feeder cattle jumped 4.800 cents to close at 363.650 cents per pound. On Monday, the market fell as a surge in corn prices signaled that livestock feed could become more expensive.
The US herd size hit a 75-year low in 2026 due to a years-long drought that burned up grazing lands and after Washington blocked cattle imports from Mexico to keep out a parasite called New World screwworm.
A resurgence of drought across the US Plains has encouraged producers to send more animals to feedlots because there is a lack of grass for them to graze on, said Austin Schroeder, analyst for Brugler Marketing & Management.
More than 60% of the US cattle herd is in an area suffering from drought, up from 29% a year ago, according to the latest US Drought Monitor data.
On Friday, the US Department of Agriculture is expected to report the US had 1.6% more cattle in feedlots as of May 1 than a year earlier, according to a Reuters poll of analysts. They estimated that April placements of cattle in feedlots were up 3.4% from a year earlier.
In CME's lean hog market, June futures fell 0.600 cent to 97.925 cents per pound and hit their lowest level since December.
