DTN Midday Livestock Comments          11/04 11:43

   Cattle Complex Lower as Fears About the Border Linger

   The cattle complex is trading lower as rumors that President Trump is 
focused on reopening the U.S.-Mexico border set the cattle complex back on edge.

ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   The livestock complex is trading fully lower into midday Tuesday as a lack 
of fundamental support in the hog sector and continued concerns about the 
border are weakening the cattle complex. Still no trade has developed in the 
fed cash cattle market. December corn is down 4 1/4 cents per bushel and 
December soybean meal is down $5.30. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 
217.00 points and the NASDAQ is down 352.27 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

   The cattle complex is back to trading lower, despite Agriculture Secretary 
Brooke Rollins saying the U.S. is not ready for the border to reopen just yet; 
she's also mentioned in other interviews that President Trump is "very focused" 
on reopening the border. Although the industry knew that at some point the 
border was going to be reopened, the cat and mouse game of trying to pinpoint 
when that is going to happen has a negative impact on the market, as one can 
see this morning. December live cattle are down $4.05 at $228.15, February live 
cattle are down $4.47 at $226.05 and April live cattle are down $4.20 at 
$225.12. Unfortunately, this headline has once again pulled the spot December 
live cattle contract back below the market's 100-day moving average. Still no 
developments have surfaced in the fed cash cattle market, and no bids or asking 
prices have surfaced quite yet.

   Boxed beef prices are mixed: choice down $1.61 ($377.64) and select up $3.17 
($363.10) with a movement of 107 loads (75.47 loads of choice, 11.51 loads of 
select, 6.71 loads of trim and 13.12 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   The feeder cattle complex is taking the morning's rumors with the biggest 
hit as the market has successfully seen prices never reached before, largely 
because of limited supplies and excellent demand. Cattle producers and traders 
alike both know that allowing for Mexican cattle imports won't completely end 
the market's rally and historical prices, but the degree to which it will 
affect prices is unknown, and that's what scares the market. November feeders 
are down $6.85 at $335.72, January feeders are down $6.80 at $329.45 and March 
feeders are down $7.32 at $325.20.

LEAN HOGS:

   The lean hog complex is again sinking lower, as traders are sickened to see 
demand simply not performing. December lean hogs are down $1.07 at $79.52, 
February lean hogs are down $1.42 at $80.77 and April lean hogs are down $1.17 
at $84.97. If the market trades much lower, it commits to trading below the 
support place at $80.00 in the December contract. The next level of technical 
support can be found at around $70.00.

   The projected lean hog index for 11/3/2025 is down $0.08 at $90.90, and the 
actual index for 10/31/2025 is down $0.21 at $90.98. Hog prices are higher on 
the Daily Direct Morning Hog Report, up $0.66 with a weighted average price of 
$84.07, ranging from $80.00 to $87.00 on 3,600 head and a five-day rolling 
average of $83.90. Pork cutouts totaled 194.84 loads with 179.44 loads of pork 
cuts and 15.39 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: down $2.33, $99.32.

   ShayLe Stewart can be reached shayle.stewart@dtn.com




(c) Copyright 2025 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.