By Benjamin Parkin

CHICAGO -- Livestock futures fell on Tuesday as concerns about oversupply continued to weigh on the market.

Lean hog futures reversed gains earlier in the session, with the April contract falling 0.8% to $65.100 a pound at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the lowest close since Dec. 6. Prices have fallen sharply since mid-March as traders bet that large numbers of hogs will keep pork cheap, propelling a downward slide.

Live cattle futures were mixed, with April contracts rising slightly before ending the day down 0.3% at $1.20775 a pound.

"The market is acting tired after the recent strength," said Scot Miller, owner of commodity brokerage Scot Miller & Associates.

Wholesale beef prices, which embarked on an unexpected rally in recent weeks, have declined over much of the past week. Showlists for cattle available on the cash market this week are slightly larger, according to Troy Vetterkind of Vetterkind Cattle Brokerage, while meatpackers surprised the market last week by slaughtering 14% more cattle than the same time last year.

All that, analysts say, could mark the arrival of larger spring supplies of cattle into the market. Prices have likely reached a seasonal peak and are expected to trend lower as a result, they say.

Traders are closely watching prices at Wednesday's Fed Cattle Exchange auction, which have risen recently, for further clues of the market trend.

Pressures on the hog market are expected to be similar. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday morning that prices for hogs on the cash market fell $1.79 to $62.04 per 100 pounds. The price of wholesale pork also fell $1.26 to $77.14 per 100 pounds.

But that decline could reverse course as cheaper prices make the market look more attractive to consumers, said broker Dennis Smith of Archer Financial Services.

"Strong demand for U.S. pork will eventually drive this market higher," he said.

Write to Benjamin Parkin at benjamin.parkin@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 28, 2017 15:15 ET (19:15 GMT)

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