Nov. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Cattle futures dropped for the sixth time in seven sessions and hogs fell from a three-month high on speculation that demand for U.S. meat exports will diminish as the dollar rallies.

The dollar climbed to the highest level in four weeks against a basket of six major currencies, eroding the appeal of U.S. goods. Cattle also fell as U.S. meatpackers slowed beef processing by 1.6 percent this week, according to government estimates.

“The outside-market influences are a little negative,” said Dennis Smith, a senior broker with Archer Financial Services Inc. in Chicago. “The slaughter pace yesterday was smaller than expected, which is not good news, and boxed-beef movement has been pretty slow.”

Cattle futures for December delivery fell 0.525 cent, or 0.6 percent, to 85.7 cents a pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. The price slipped 2 percent last week, while the dollar gained 1.1 percent. Feeder-cattle futures for January settlement slid 0.3 cent, or 0.3 percent, to 95.275 cents a pound.

About 244,000 cattle went to slaughter in the first two days of this week, down from 248,000 in the same period last week, U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates show. Meatpacker choice-beef shipments fell 16 percent last week from the previous week.

Beef Price Rises

Wholesale choice beef rose 0.3 percent to $1.4199 a pound at midday. The price has climbed 6 percent since Oct. 9, partly on speculation that U.S. retailers were stocking up on beef before the Christmas and New Year’s Day holidays.

“The slowdown in boxed-beef movement is telling me that we’re about to run to the end of the line, as far as holiday demand is concerned,” Smith said.

Hog futures for December settlement fell 0.175 cent, or 0.3 percent, to 57.55 cents a pound. Earlier, the price reached 58.275 cents, the highest level for a most-active contract since July 22. The commodity has declined 5.5 percent this year.

Wholesale pork rose 0.9 percent to 58.68 cents a pound yesterday, according to the USDA. The price is up 6.2 percent in the past week on mounting speculation that Russia will increase imports of U.S. pork.

Hogs in Russia face an outbreak of African swine fever. The disease, which isn’t a threat to people, kills almost all the pigs it infects.

To contact the reporter on this story: Whitney McFerron in Chicago at wmcferron1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 3, 2009 15:38 EST