Hogs

• Following Wednesday’s move, hog futures closed mixed on Thursday with front months moving lower while deferred months saw some positive. 
• Cutout gave a positive tone as Wednesday’s pressure on cuts such as the loin, ham, and belly took back part of those losses.  Hams typically see some seasonal pressure as we move further into August.  Deli demand was noted yesterday. 
• Seafood claims the top spot among protein features again this week, making up 30.3% of all retail ads, followed by beef at 26.2%, pork at 20.8%, and chicken at 18.9%.  Grilling season is still going strong.  Pork prices were largely down year-over-year, with the exception of bacon, which averaged $6.30 per pound (up 28 cents).
• National hog prices fell $2.55 on Thursday.  Cash hog prices are expected to be steady to weaker on Friday as buying interest turns sluggish heading into the weekend. 
• Wednesday’s hog slaughter was revised downward by 14,000 to 465,000 head. Projections for Saturday’s harvest range from 45,000 to 50,000 head.

Grains

• Overnight Dec corn is down half a penny, Nov down 2 cents. S&P 500 is up 14 points. USD is lower at 98.28. Crude is higher at 64.19. Gold is higher, and Copper is higher.
• Grain markets are quiet this morning so far with low trading volume as everyone is awaiting next Tuesday’s August WASDE.
• The soy complex rallied yesterday, except for the bean oil. Bearish attitudes appear to have peaked yesterday and with USDA’s supply and demand report coming early next week, a short covering rally was due.
• Corn closed strong and has rallied $0.10 off yesterday’s lows as prices were supported by an unusually large weekly export sales yesterday morning. Sales were above the guess by quite a bit, and the 3^rd highest weekly sales in history.
• Wheat market followed corn higher yesterday after another very strong weekly export sales report/ Cumulative sales are well above the 5-year average for the first time of the season and this week’s break was enough to make US prices very competitive.

Cattle

• Cattle futures moved higher again on Thursday making new contracts highs. The market continues to make new highs, as supplies remain tight.
• Cutout is giving some support as well, indicating strong demand after falling off it’s June highs.  Choice gained another $4 yesterday, putting the week to date gain so far at $15.72. Retailers will begin to build inventories for Labor day and several days of large gains in box prices have reflected the change in leverage. The consumer has yet to face a rebalanced sticker price reflecting the input cost of live cattle.
• According to the latest data released by Brazil’s Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services, Brazil has shipped 276,879 mt of fresh beef (frozen and refrigerated) in July 2025, marking a monthly growth of 15.3% and a 13.3% YOY increase.  Mexico surpassed the US and advanced to second place, despite a slight MOM drop of 3.6% to 15,580 mt. The US followed next with 12,998 mt, down 5.6% compared to June and 11.6% lower than last year, as recent US tariffs on Brazilian beef weighed on buying interest.
• August futures this week so far have gained $8.62.  Only a sprinkling of cattle traded at $237 in Texas this week, but most asking prices remain at $240 in the south and $250 in the north.

Weather

• Rainfall yesterday extended farther south into Missouri than forecasted, but fell short of penetrating deep into Illinois. The most significant precipitation totals were recorded across the Northern Plains, where a system moved through overnight, impacting the northern two-thirds of Minnesota, southern Manitoba, and circling back into North Dakota.
• Looking ahead, the weekend forecast has trended notably cooler across the Central U.S. In contrast, the 6-10 day outlook continues to favor hotter conditions for the Northern Plains and Canadian Prairies. In South America, conditions are expected to remain cool and dry through the weekend. Meanwhile, the European Union is bracing for hot and dry weather, particularly in France and the Balkans, which could add further stress to corn crops in those regions.