USA: Lean hog futures end on technical trading

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle futures rose on Tuesday on technical trading and anticipation of consumer demand remaining strong going into the Christmas holidays, Reuters reported, citing market analysts. "Going into the holidays, consumers are buying beef," said Karl Setzer, co-founder of Consus Ag Consulting. "They want the prime rib roasts and they're passing on turkeys," he said. Meanwhile, CME lean hog futures eased on technical trading and amid questions about Chinese demand with most-active February futures dropping at one point to a multi-week low. The American Farm Bureau Federation released data prior to the Thanksgiving holiday indicating that demand for turkey was sharply down in 2024. Feeder cattle took additional support from low supplies of animals on feed lots in preparation for slaughter, said Setzer. In CME lean hog futures traders were "getting some downtrend sell signals, technically," said Don Roose, president of US Commodities. Growing concern ...