7/13/17 kill was down -0.22 to 92.67 and that is just about where the NNNs settled. There are two days of data to get us to cash settlement. It looks like I may go to cash settlement with a couple. The collapse of the QQQs sent the "Gap" wide opened at -12.82 at the settle with the QQQs at a discount to the component. I can't find where there has ever been a "Gap" close to that. Prior to this year the largest discount I have been able to locate was -6.3 set in early June of 2014. Tuesday the "Gap" closing dance begins when the QQQs become front month and what a dance it is going to be with a "Gap" like that!

The collapse suffered by the QQQs today could scare the pants off of some producers causing them to sell QQQs to hedge their production. If this drop was a technical/emotional move not based on the current strong demand, it could reverse next week and strip some margin out of a bunch of producers' accounts. I have said before that I would hate to be a producer trying to hedge in this market and I still feel that way.

The 6-day carcass weight was unchanged a 208.08# That is -1.39# year/year. It appears that producers are staying current in their shipments. Packer hogs are lighter at -1.01# and were a bit heavier today while non-packer hogs were a bit lighter. That probably does not mean much at this point but could if a trend develops.

The collapse in the price of the cutouts that started yesterday did NOT have any follow-through today with the a gain of +0.81 instead of another leg down.

The kill this week was a bit below expectations. Still no hint of an impending flood of hogs coming to market in the near term.

Today I was able to take some profits on some short J/K spreads and added a couple of long Q/V spreads. Those Q/Vs have treated me just swell this year.

Best wishes,

dhm