CME cattle futures end lower as consumer confidence falls

By Renee Hickman

CHICAGO, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell Wednesday on fears over slowing consumer meat demand, and the possibility of Mexico and Canada retaliating against new U.S. tariffs on beef imports, according to analysts.

CME April live cattle futures LCJ25 settled down 1.100 cents at 194.625 cents per pound after three straight sessions of advances.

April feeder cattle futures FCH25 ended 0.275-cent lower at 273.525 cents per pound.

The most-active April lean hog futures LHJ25 rose 1.725 cents after falling for five straight sessions, settling at 88.300 cents per pound.

The Conference Board's consumer confidence index dropped 7 points, the biggest decline since August 2021, to 98.3 this month, and cattle futures are quick to take a hit when consumer confidence falls, said Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag Consulting.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index falling to only 102.5.

The survey on Tuesday noted that "comments on the current administration and its policies dominated the responses."

Meanwhile, feeder cattle futures were also weighed down by fears of retaliation against U.S. agricultural exports if tariffs against imports from Mexico and Canada go into effect on March 4, market analysts said.

The Trump administration has said the tariffs are on track to be implemented after a 30-day delay, but there is considerable uncertainty among market players, Setzer said.

But on Wednesday, Trump raised hopes for another month-long pause on the steep new tariffs, saying they could instead take effect on April 2. Trump also said 25% "reciprocal" tariffS on European cars and other goods could be rolled out.

In the wholesale beef market, the U.S. Department of Agriculture priced choice cuts at $312.90 per hundredweight on Wednesday afternoon, down $1.42 from Tuesday. Select cuts were down 89 cents at $303.24.

Pork prices rose, with the USDA pricing carcasses at $96.66 per cwt on Wednesday afternoon, up $1.01 from Tuesday.