Fed cattle supplies appear to be tightening, sending cash prices higher, threatening more record highs. Many analysts think ranchers are holding heifers back to rebuild herds, and USDA data show weekly heifer slaughter well below a year earlier and the previous five-year average since early July. The last week of June, federally inspected heifer slaughter … Read More
Beef Production Outlook Supporting Prices
Weekly beef production has been below the five-year average all year, and below last year in all but two weeks, and the probability of it remaining low is supporting beef prices. USDA data show production last week at 420.5 million pounds, down 41 million, or 8.88%, from the same week a year ago and down … Read More
Cattle Market Moves Hard To Correlate
Southern Plains fed cattle prices last week jumped about $8 per cwt on a live basis, nearly matching the previous record, as beef prices moved higher and packers sought slaughter inventory. The preliminary average price for Southern Plains fed cattle last week was $162.86 per cwt, compared with the previous cash high of $162.97 set … Read More
Managed Money, Producers Buy Cattle
Managed money and cattle producers tend to make market moves that are opposite each other, but in the week ended Tuesday, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission reported they both were in a buying mood. The CFTC reported that managed money, a proxy for large speculators, increased their net long positions by 16,183 contracts to 94,121 … Read More
Lean Hogs Rebound From Limit Losses
Lean hog markets are up in overnight trading, rebounding from sharp losses Thursday that saw some contracts hit limit down, possibly the result of more careful consideration of just what made prices fall in the first place. Market analysts credited Thursday’s fall to news the USDA had approved licensing of a new vaccine from Zoetis … Read More
Rosy Cattle Market Outlooks Not Without Risk
Some market analysts are telling cattle feeders that the world will be their oyster for the next three to five years. Tight supplies and strong beef demand likely will keep fed cattle prices high while climatologists expect a period of at least adequate rain that should keep feed production up and prices low. However, those … Read More
Steer Prices Near Seasonal Flat Phase
Slaughter steer prices in the Southern Plains last week took an unexpected turn upward as profitable packer margins and an impending long holiday weekend encouraged packers to pay up. It could be the start of a trail of seasonal price stability into December. The five-year average of USDA Southern Plains fed cattle prices flattens out … Read More