U.S. livestock: Cattle futures rise, nearby hogs edge down

Chicago cattle futures continue to rise on Wednesday while nearby lean hog contracts edged downward.

Most active June live cattle closed at 208.100 cents per pound, a gain of 1.825 cents. August live cattle futures settled at 203.875 cents per pound, a gain of 1.425 cents.

Most active August feeder cattle futures settled at 292.175 cents per pound for a gain of 0.925 cents. May feeders closed at 288.350 cents per pound, up 1.425.

Choice boxed beef made slight gains to close at $331.97 per cwt, up $0.24, the USDA reported. Select boxed beef lost $3.13 per cwt to settle at $314.52.

Most active June lean hog contracts settled at 100.150 cents per pound, a loss of 0.125 cents. May lean hogs lost 0.350 cents to close at 91.875 cents per pound. July contracts eked out a gain of 0.025 cents to close at 100.300 cents per pound.

Pork carcass cutout value sat at $94.08 per cwt in the USDA’s afternoon report—a loss of $1.70.

U.S. stocks and soybean futures rallied Wednesday morning on signs that Trump administration may be open to de-escalating its trade war with China.

“Neither side believes that these are sustainable levels. As I said yesterday, this is the equivalent of an embargo and a break between the two countries in trade does not suit anyone’s interest,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters.

—Prices reported in U.S. dollars