CHICAGO, July 5 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures climbed on Wednesday on technical support and buying spurred by tight hog supplies and higher pork prices, traders said.
The benchmark August lean hog futures contract rose to the highest since March 16, extending gains in the prior session that took prices above its 50-day moving average, a key technical level.
Live cattle futures, meanwhile, ended lower in a technical pullback from recent highs and as beef demand was seen wavering following U.S. Independence Day holiday cookouts.
"We're unwinding some of that bearishness we had on the hogs and the bullishness that we had in the cattle. We got too low on hogs and probably too high on cattle," said Don Roose, president of U.S. Commodities.
CME August lean hogs gained 3.125 cents to settle at 97.450 cents per pound. The contract hit technical chart resistance at its 200-day moving average but still posted its highest close since mid-March.
August live cattle futures ended down 1.875 cents at 174.950 cents per pound after coming within 0.75 cent of its life-of-contract high in the previous trading session.
Feeder cattle futures also ended lower in a technical pullback from early session peaks, including contract highs posted in some nearby contacts, and as corn feed prices stabilized after a recent steep drop. August feeders ended 3.200 cents lower at 244.700 cents per lb.
Livestock slaughter rates returned to more normal levels on Wednesday following downtime around the Independence Day holiday.
Traders were assessing meat demand and supplies of cattle and hogs.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said the wholesale pork
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