Trend of Cattle Prices Decidedly Irregular--Hog Market Has Fairly
Healthy Tone.
(Chicago, East St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha, and St. Paul.)
Receipts of live stock during the closing week of September were of
generous volume despite the fact that conditions in some departments of
the trade during the preceding week bordered on demoralization. An
increased proportion of trashy, light-weight cattle indicated that
producers were anxious to liquidate surplus holdings before stormy
weather sets in, while a corresponding decrease in receipts of corn-feds
suggested a decreased number of well-conditioned beef cattle in feeders’
hands.
Chicago’s cattle receipts for the week were the largest since January,
while the combined ten-market supply of about 242,300 cattle was
practically the same as the week previous but 41,000 short of the
corresponding week a year ago.
Following the descent of hog prices during the preceding week to the
lowest levels of the year, the marketward movement of hogs expanded
materially, the ten-market total at approximately 436,000 being 40,000
in excess of the week previous, and nearly 60,000 greater than the same
week last year. The hog run, while continuing to carry an abnormally
large proportion of heavy packing sows for this period of the year,
showed a considerably enlarged quota Of spring-farrowed, light and
underweight stock and average weights decreased at most points. The
disposition shown by producers in many sections to unload pigs and
immature light hogs was anything but a bullish influence on prices but a
revival of eastern shipping demand assisted in checking the decline.