DTN Early Word Livestock Comments      09/16 06:10
   Choppy Livestock Trading Activity May Continue

   Livestock traders just could not find anything to get excited about on
Friday. Live cattle closed mixed while feeder cattle were lower. Hog futures
followed a similar pattern with limited fundamental news to move the market.

Robin Schmahl
DTN Contributing Analyst

   Cattle: Steady        Futures: Mixed       Live Equiv: $224.20 -$1.43*

   Hogs: Lower          Futures: Mixed      Lean Equiv: $99.99 -$0.30**

   *Based on the formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer
revenue. (The Live Cattle Equiv. The index has been updated to depict recent
changes in live cattle weights and grading percentages.)

   ** based on formula estimating lean hog equivalent of gross packer revenue.

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   Cash cattle traded steady last week which may provide some optimism to begin
the week. Maybe the weakness of cash has run its course, and stability will
return to the market. However, the continued weakness of boxed beef is a
concern. Prices were lower on Friday with choice down $2.27 and select down
$1.47. If boxed beef shows further weakness during the week, it is doubtful
that packers will pay more for cattle and a further reduction of slaughter will
be seen. Cattle continue to be purchased for deferred delivery keeping packers
from having to purchase cattle aggressively to fill slaughter. The feedlots
will try for nothing less than steady money again this week. The Commitment of
Traders report showed fund traders added 1,659 futures contracts in live cattle
to increase their net long position to 44,322. Fund traders were net sellers of
1,346 feeder cattle futures contracts moving their net short position to 2,608
contracts.