The seasonal narrowing of the difference between choice and select wholesale beef prices this year is steeper than normal but could be showing the beginning signs of flattening – also a seasonal move. It is common for the spread in USDA-reported wholesale choice and select beef carcass cutout prices to narrow in January as consumer … Read More

The seasonal narrowing of the difference between choice and select wholesale beef prices this year is steeper than normal but could be showing the beginning signs of flattening – also a seasonal move. It is common for the spread in USDA-reported wholesale choice and select beef carcass cutout prices to narrow in January as consumer … Read More

Total red meat supplies in freezers on Dec. 31 were up about 3% from Nov. 30 but were down about 5% from last year, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service said in its monthly Cold Storage report Friday. Total frozen poultry supplies were up about 1% from the previous month but down about 8% from … Read More

Large commodity index funds, known as managed money, barely increased their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday, while hedgers trimmed their total net short position more aggressively. The data came from the weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.   FUNDS’ POSITION BARELY HIGHER … Read More

The USDA’s Foreign Agriculture Service in Beijing, China, Thursday reported that in marketing year 2024/25, the country’s estimated total grain output will reach a record 706.5 million tonnes, a 1.6% increase over MY-2023/24, driven by expanded acreage and higher yields.   CORN PRODUCTION FORECAST UP 2%   Corn production was forecast to rise 2% to … Read More

A seasonal decline in US weekly beef production begins next week, but the decline is so uneven many may miss it until it drops off for the Memorial Day holiday week.   BEEF PRODUCTION SIMILAR TO PREVIOUS YEARS   A Livestock Marketing Information Center graph of weekly federally inspected beef production data from the USDA’s … Read More

Tighter beef cattle inventories are expected in the Jan. 31 USDA Cattle Inventory report, said Rob Ziegler, Extension specialist, at the University of Wyoming, in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets. Total headcount likely will affect total beef production in years ahead, but the amount of beef produced per cow … Read More