US red meat exports ended the first quarter on a very high note, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation, with March beef and pork exports each posting the highest monthly value on record. Pork exports and shipments of beef muscle cuts also set new volume records in … Read More

Chicago corn futures prices tumbled Monday amid news reports showing the likelihood of better growing conditions – at least for the short term, market analysts said. Planting progress and rain in some key areas of the contiguous 48 states were credited with the price pressure.  Weekend rains were better than some expected last week, accelerating … Read More

Managed money, those large commodity investment funds, for the fourth straight week liquidated long futures positions and as of Tuesday were at their lowest point in 3 ½ months. At the same time, commercial traders, those who own, or will own, the cattle at some point in their lives, cut their collective net short live … Read More

Soil moisture conditions in the Plains, Midwest and Southeast remained favorable for crops after storms there during the week ended Tuesday, but western states remain parched, according to Thursday’s US Drought Monitor from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service. In Texas, seven-day rainfall accumulations ranged from 2 to 10+ inches … Read More

At a time when most cattle traders are focused on beef and corn prices, something as mundane as beef cattle female slaughter could slip under the radar, but it shouldn’t, a market analyst said. Continued drought in many western US states appears to be adding to a move to liquidate some beef cows, just as … Read More

The Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer was virtually unchanged in April from March, up one point to a reading of 178, said Purdue Agricultural Economist James Mintert, in a release. The Ag Economy Barometer is calculated each month from 400 US agricultural producers’ responses to a telephone survey.  This month’s survey was conducted from … Read More

Spiking US corn prices were thought to be attributed by a market analyst solely to prospects for strong exports and domestic needs. So far, the pace of US corn planting likely won’t generate a weather spike in prices, as it’s well ahead of the 2016-2020 average, the market analyst said following the release of the … Read More