Commodities Tuesday, Oct. 21, 1986 : Livestock Futures Prices Off

Livestock and meat futures retreated sharply with some pork prices plunging the limit allowed for daily trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Frozen pork bellies were down the 2 cents-a-pound limit and the nearby hog contracts hit the 1 1/2 cents limit before trimming the losses.

In other markets, oil futures were a little higher; most grain and soybean futures advanced; and precious metals were lower.

“Cash prices (for hogs) were very good, a buck or two higher on some of them,” said Tom O’Hare, an analyst in New York with Smith Barney, Harris Upham & Co.

But, he said: “there’s talk of wet weather coming back into the Midwest and some fears that farmers won’t be able to do harvesting so they’ll be bringing their hogs to market.”

Cattle prices also were lower and analysts partially blamed a government cattle-on-feed report coming out Friday that is expected to be negative for the distant contract months.

Most energy futures prices moved a little higher as traders watched what appeared to be the final stages of the marathon meeting of the Organizaion of Petroleum Exporting Countries.