Cattle feeding margins last week declined as fed cattle prices dipped and feed costs for cattle sold to packers rose, according to the Sterling Profit Tracker. The Sterling Profit Tracker is the work of John Nalivka, president of Sterling Marketing Inc., in Vale, Ore., and is published by AgWeb. The feeding margin for fed cattle … Read More

Cash fed cattle prices are being pressured by live cattle futures as the Aug contract nears its last trading day on the 31st. Futures markets are designed to converge with cash markets by the time the nearest futures contract reaches its last trading day, in this case, Aug. 31. Deliveries of live, slaughter-ready cattle to … Read More

Meaningful beef trade volumes from last week’s agreement with Brazil to open both markets to fresh and chilled beef likely will take a while, said two prominent agricultural economists. Ron Plain and Scott Brown, agricultural economists at the University of Missouri, co-authored an outlook report that looked into that development and concluded that any significant … Read More

The USDA’s World Agricultural Outlook Board Friday reduced its estimate of 2016 meat and poultry production as lower estimates for pork and chicken production more than offset estimates of gains in beef and turkey. In its World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report, the USDA said total red meat and poultry production for this year … Read More

Wholesale beef prices continue to trend lower, generally following last year’s second-half direction as supplies increase. The USDA’s choice boxed beef cutout is about to cross below the 2010-2014 average and could remain there for years as the cattle cycle continues to crank out more fed cattle. SEASONAL GAINS VS SUPPLY BOOST The 2010-2014 average … Read More

Cow/calf producers wanting to market calves at weaning should look to move them earlier rather than later, said a prominent agricultural economist. Andrew Griffith, from the University of Tennessee, wrote in his weekly market commentary that calf prices this fall were expected to decline.  Prices could drop into the mid-$120s for 550-pound steers in Tennessee. … Read More

It looks like it will be October before steer hide and offal values cross above last year’s declining rate after narrowly avoiding such a cross three weeks ago. Total average prices for steer hide and offal on a live animal basis continue to follow the trend of the 2010-2014 weekly average but at a much … Read More