DTN Early Word Livestock Comments      12/01 06:03
   Cattle Futures May Bounce Back a Bit

   Cattle and hog futures diverged on Thursday as hog futures continued to find
willing buyers to keep the recent strength alive. Cattle quickly ran out of
steam as cash cattle in the South traded weaker than earlier in the week.

Robin Schmahl
DTN Contributing Analyst

   Cattle: Lower        Futures: Lower    Live Equiv:   $215.98 +$1.01*

   Hogs: Lower         Futures: Mixed    Lean Equiv:  $91.32 -$0.14**

   *Based on formula estimating live cattle equivalent of gross packer revenue.
(The Live Cattle Equiv. 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:

   The trading began without much fanfare in cattle futures, but that quickly
turned lower as selling pressure surfaced. The dismal weekly export sales may
have had some influence on the market as they totaled 6,300 MT, down 37% from
the previous week. Pressure also came from cash cattle in the South trading
lower than earlier in the week with cash at $174, down $3 from last week.
Northern dressed cattle traded at $4 lower and in line with earlier trade.
Cattle futures led cash lower and now is maintaining a discount for the time
being. Some of the futures trading activity could have been influenced by the
end of the month, but that certainly does not mean futures will rebound today.
Stronger boxed beef might provide some beginning-of-the-month buying interest,
but traders will remain cautious. Boxed beef was higher with choice up $1.99
and select up $0.66.