Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-09
LIVE STOCK PRICES
BELIEVED STEADY
Farm Board Member Sees
Signs Of Better Market
in Near Future.
BY FRANK I. MILLER.
Associated Press Farm Editor.


c. B. Denman, Farm Board member
representing live stock, said he be-
lfeved the market definitely was past
its worst period Of depression. All
categories caught and chung to higher
price level last week, whereas desperate
clutching above water heretofore has
seen the hold broken again and again.
The gain was all the more impressive
in that it was registered despite that
killers fought it from start to finish. It
was not until closing sessions brought
heavier cattle receipts that killers were
able TO put their hands at price making
Competition, even though enforced,
was feature which distinguished the
current market period from the draggy
sessions which have gone before. The
fact that there was comparatively little
beef around had the immediate effect
of lifting live values and compelling
killers to compete.
Market Undertone Better.
Although increased receipts, at
tracted by rather sharp and uneven
price advance, carried values OF as
much as Is cents in some instances
and left the closing trade in a down.
ward trend, cattle remained substan-
TALLY higher than a week ago.
Back OF the upturn, which hit she
stock as well as steers, was a decidedly
healthier undertone in the dressed beef
trade. No doubt part of the advance
came by way of higher prices for fresh
pork, that commodity having been
something Of price wrecker in beef
for the last month or more. AS pork
shot up beef became little more popu-
lar.
The only basic thing to warrant the
upturn was improvement in dressed
beef circles, and it is doubtful whether
that was SUFFICIENT to explain such an
upturn as little feifers got, even if they
have been selling particularly low dur
ing the last few weeks
The upturn was most uniformly no.
ticeable on the better grades with
weight. Light steers and yearlings, how
ever, always had market If they were
well covered, and until the very close
there was nothing wrong with the
trade on lower grades, even if the mar
ket for them was more or less tmde-
pendable.
1t is not to be overlooked that semi
starvation runs contributed substan-
TALLY to the advance. Although the
market is on higher level, supply fig
ures will be an important factor next
week, and 1t Is not to be expected that
there can't be at least a temporary
downturn if the weeks prices attract
too many cattle next week. How immi-
nent that danger may be is seen in the
fact that receipts have been running
below normal for the last two weeks
The live market is very sympathetic
to dressed values and the size of runs
right now, and changes are almost GER
tain to develop from day to day.
Hog Market.
Except for strong to 10 cents higher
trend IN the heavyweight division, the
hog market is carrying on at an even
tenor. Packing soW's closed 10 to Is
cents higher than a week ago. Cur
tailed supplies were the main support
ing factor in the trade. 1t prompted
in the fresh pork market,
which, in turn, FASTENED hoof trading.
Price upturns hinged almost entirely
on curtailment OF supplies. and an m
crease in market receipts no doubt
would be reflected promptly in the fresh
pork market. Shippers are buying spar
ingly. The $4,000 head they took at
Chicago the first four days of this
week looks small In comparison with the
SIS 900 head for a like period at the
height OF the shipping season early in.
January.
Tnere has been a reduction Of about
20 per cent In supplies at ii principal
markets since a week ago.
Sheep and Lambs.
With the Colorado movement in full
swing, it is rather dificult to foresee
the immediate future for sheep and
lambs. BY cutting of the supply which
hurried in on Ghe heels OF sharply
higher trends in fat lamb prices this
week, the country was able to restore
the decline that started as soon as kill
ers got their hands ON Tuesdays $4,000
head run. Most lambs finished IS to SO
cents higher than last weeks low time.
Aside from single vicious break, it was
not bad market.
The fact that receipts fell of con-
at the close might be con-
strued to mean dressed prices are in no
immediate danger. But the future
course of live prices undoubtedly will
be determined, more or less bv the
number of lambs shipped out of the
present principal source Of supply-Col-
orado and Nebraska.