Wintry weather, China concerns support new highs in the hog market. By
2/3/2021 The cattle market continues to see a strong demand tone, with beef prices pushing to their highest level since early December. Talk of better export demand, the surge higher in pork prices, and the impact of restaurants reopening are all seen as supportive forces. With the heavy cattle weights, short-term supplies seem ample, but the continued advance in beef prices is a bullish force. Total slaughter for last week reached 653,000 head, up 2.4% from last year, while beef production was up 4.6% from last year. Technically, the market still looks vulnerable to at least a short-term correction. With bitter cold in the forecast into the weekend and some areas with big snow amounts, some traders see the weather as a bullish force. On the other hand, traders may question the short-term consumer demand for beef with so much snow on the East Coast.