Markets Incentivize Meat Production, Use

Favorable returns and robust demand provide incentives for continued meat growth over the next 10 years, said the USDA’s Interagency Agricultural Projections Committee. Nominal beef cattle prices drop over much of the period before increasing at the end, while nominal broiler and hog prices generally increase, after an initial decline, as the population and export … Read More

Funds Still Buying Cattle

Large commodity investment firms, called managed money, continued to invest in live cattle futures during the week ended last Tuesday while producers trimmed their net short position. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday showed that as of Tuesday, managed money had increased their collective net long live cattle futures position … Read More

Drought Covers Much of US Grazing Land

A large portion of the US cattle inventory is in an area experiencing drought, which is likely affecting the timing of placements of feeder cattle in feedlots, said the USDA’s Liv A large portion of the US cattle inventory is in an area experiencing drought, which is likely affecting the timing of placements of feeder … Read More

Beef Demand Study Instructive

A study by university economists about beef demand presented to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board is instructive for assessing overall beef demand and changes to demand over time. Economists Glynn Tonsor and Ted Schroeder, both of Kansas State University along with Jayson Lusk at Purdue University outlined the project’s objective to provide a muti-faceted assessment of … Read More

Monetary Policy Forms Inflation Expectations

Changes in US monetary policy over the last decade have potential implications for investors and their inflation expectations, said Taeyoung Doh, senior economist, and Amy Oksol, both of the Kansas City Federal Reserve, in a study released Tuesday. During the financial crisis and Great Recession of 2007–09, the Federal Reserve’s conventional policy tool, the nominal … Read More

Rising World Pork Production Could Weigh On Meat Prices

Rising pork production around the world, particularly in China and the US, could cut into US hog prices as supply outweighs demand. The extra meat on world markets then could cut into beef and cattle prices and could even back up chicken markets. China is building its hog production capacity with very large farrow-to-finish operations … Read More

Funds Keep Buying Cattle, Corn

Large commodity funds, known as managed money, increased their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday as producer types extended their net short position. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report showed that managed money’s new net long cattle position was 94,054 contracts, up 7,966, or 9.25%, … Read More