Large commodity index funds, better known as managed money, lifted their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday as hedgers nudged their total net short position, according to the weekly Commitments of Traders report from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Friday.   MANAGED MONEY BUYS CATTLE   Managed money’s collective … Read More

Total red meat supplies in US freezers on Aug. 31 were up about 1% from the previous month and up about 20% from last year, while total frozen poultry supplies were up about 2% from the previous month and up about 11% from a year ago, according to the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service’s monthly … Read More

Winter wheat grazing prospects in the Plains this fall look profitable if possible, said Oklahoma State University Livestock Marketing Specialist Derrell Peel, in a letter to Extension agents called Cow-Calf Corner. Soils in the Plains are very dry, reducing grazing prospects in dryland wheat, but current cash and futures prices offer a profitable venture, if … Read More

A farmer survey by University of Missouri agriculture professors that was sponsored by CoBank, a national cooperative bank, found that off-farm jobs and income were critical to farmers and ranchers. The authors found a growing rural and urban connection in the necessity of outside income for farmers and ranchers, calling it “under appreciated.”  And the … Read More

The number of cattle in Canada’s feedlots on Sep. 1 totaled 811,771 head down from August but following the 2016-2020 average trend closely but at a higher level, according to CanFax, a private market advisory group in Canada. CanFax collects the data from feedlots in Alberta and Saskatchewan and sends the total results to its … Read More

Managed money, a proxy for large commodity investment funds, increased their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday to a level not seen for months. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, in its weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday for data as of Tuesday, also said commercial traders, those who own, … Read More

The monthly spread between the wholesale and retail prices of beef is wider than either last year or the preceding five-year average, according to the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service and the Economic Research Service. The USDA data is collected, formulated and released by the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver.  A graph of the monthly … Read More