Futures on cattle closed in downtrend on Monday amid profit fixing and renewal of all-time highs.
By the end of CME trades April futures on cattle lost 0.62 cent (0.5 %) and equaled 1.2175 US dollars per pound. June contract dropped by 0.9 cent (0.7%) down to 1.2000 US dollars per pound.
May futures on well-fed livestock declined by 0.72 cent (0.5%) and constituted 1.3767 US dollars per bushel. August contract decreased by 0.05 cent down to 1.4135 US dollars per bushel.
The news about China having boosted the rates by 25 basis points to curb inflation led to many market participants fixing profit. It had positive influence upon quotations.
Additionally, traders decided to close long positions thinking that a seasonal price growth is already reflected in quotations.
Besides, explicit interest for futures on cattle reached its all-time maximum. Interest for June futures constituted 183 526 tons. Under these circumstances many market participants decided to close their long positions when futures started to drop from their intraday highs.
However, the US Agriculture Department data on wholesale prices contributed to withholding the decrease. According to the government, the wholesale prices for beef grew by 0.25-0.8 US dollars per pound.
