TOP STORIES

Olive Garden Parent to Boost Wages as Sales Pick Up

Restaurant workers for the Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse dining chains will soon be guaranteed a higher minimum wage.

Starting Monday, hourly restaurant workers at both chains will earn at least $10 an hour in wages and tips combined, with further increases to $12 an hour to be phased in through 2023.

Darden Expecting Food Inflation -- Market Talk

1011 ET - Olive Garden-parent Darden Restaurants says it expects higher commodity inflation in 4Q. Chicken costs are growing, and oil is also a factor, the chain says in 3Q earnings. "Oil is one where we think it's going to be pretty high," CFO Raj Vennam says. The company says beef prices were higher than average in 3Q. (heather.haddon@wsj.com; @heatherhaddon)

STORIES OF INTEREST

Compass Group Expects 2Q 2021 Organic Revenue Fall

Compass Group said Thursday that it expects a 28% fall in organic revenue for the three months to March 31 as the company starts to lap the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on fiscal 2020 revenue.

The U.K. catering contractor said that there may be a possible 930 million pounds ($1.27 billion) hit on 2020 revenue and a GBP36 million hit on operating profit, stemming from negative foreign exchange rates.

Covid-19 Vaccinations, Tests Give Boost to Kroger's Health Ambitions

Thousands of people recently streamed into an arena in Lexington, Ky., to receive Covid-19 vaccines, but it wasn't a hospital or health company managing the event. It was Kroger Co., the biggest U.S. supermarket chain.

The Cincinnati-based company, which put up signage around the arena, has administered about 28,250 doses at the mass-vaccination site since February. Kroger hopes to boost its health business through its pandemic efforts. It aims to deliver millions of vaccinations to people nationwide and create more repeat customers for its pharmacies and supermarket offerings.

FUTURES MARKETS

Hogs Extend Their Turn Higher -- Market Talk

1539 ET - Lean hog futures on the CME finished higher for the third consecutive session, with the most-active contract up 1.3% to $1.03325 per pound. That makes it 30% that they've risen since January. Speculation about African swine fever surging again in China has been pushing prices higher, with sow herd seen as falling 3%-5% each month since December. Traders see this as an opportunity to sell more pork to China. Hog futures jumped 74% from February through May 2019 when swine fever was decimating China's hog herds and boosting imports from the US. Meanwhile, live cattle futures finished up 0.6% to $1.21075 per pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

CASH MARKETS 


 
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Mar 25 
 
Source: USDA, based on Wall Street Journal calculations. 
All figures are on a per-head basis. 
 
Date     Standard Margin       Estimated margin 
         Operating Index         at vertically - 
                             integrated operations 
 
Mar 25       +$ 22.15            +$ 98.10 
Mar 24       +$ 26.85            +$100.83 
Mar 23       +$ 18.66            +$ 90.04 
 
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production. 
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of 
production of the animals. 
 
Beef-O-Meter 
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite 
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices. 
 
                                  Beef 
          For Today              Choice   92.3 
      (Percent of Year-Ago)      Select   92.2 
 
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports

Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Thursday rose $1.61 per hundred pounds, to $236.45, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices rose $2.18 per hundred pounds, to $226.25. The total load count was 102. Wholesale pork prices fell $1.27, to $108.03 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

03-25-21 1732ET