DTN Early Word Livestock Comments      04/30 06:07
   Nearby April Cattle Futures Cease Trading Today

   The nearby April live cattle contract was the surprise on Wednesday, pushing
substantially higher with today being the last day of the contract. The rest of
the cattle futures closed mixed. Strong buying interest in hogs surfaced as the
recent price weakness was overdone.

Robin Schmahl
DTN Contributing Analyst

   Cattle: Higher           Futures: Mixed      Live Equiv: $287.39 -$0.72*

   Hogs: Lower             Futures: Higher    Lean Equiv: $103.43 -$1.07**

   *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:

   The April live cattle contract was a sight to behold on Wednesday, with
futures closing $4.20 higher. Today is the last trading day for the contract,
with June taking over as the lead month. The April feeder cattle contract was
not as exuberant with a gain of $0.20. It also ends trading today, with the May
contract taking over as the lead month. The rest of the contracts were mixed.
Cattle supplies are tight, but traders are cautious about adding a premium to
deferred futures contracts. There were further cash sales this week, with some
Southern sales taking place as much as $9.00 higher. Packers certainly are
aggressive as they need cattle, resulting in increasingly negative margins.
Boxed beef prices were lower, with choice down $0.85 and select down $2.53.
Feeder cattle remain in strong demand with higher prices in the country.