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

Although cattle imports and export totals sound large in absolute numbers, the role of imported cattle is rather modest in domestic markets, said Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University livestock marketing specialist in a letter to Extension Agents called Cow-Calf Corner. Imports of slaughter cows/bulls for the first seven months of 2022 accounted for 2.8% of … Read More

The USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service reported in an annual report that China’s 2023 imports of breeding swine and pork were expected to decline to 5,000 head and 1.85 million tonnes, respectively.  Lower domestic hog and pork price were cited for the forecast decline in imports. Consumer price sensitivity and competition among producers were expected to … Read More

The USDA’s new forecast for 2022 red meat and poultry production was fractionally higher Monday than last month, as higher beef, pork and broiler forecasts were balanced by a lower turkey forecast. For 2023, the red meat and poultry production forecast was raised on higher beef and broiler production expectations. The latest forecasts came in … Read More

After a one-week lull, large commodity investment funds, or managed money, resumed building their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday. At the same time, commercial traders, those who own, or will own, the cattle, increased their total net short cattle position. The data came from the Commodity Futures Trading … Read More