The USDA’s monthly Cold Storage report Monday said total red meat supplies in US freezers on Nov. 30 were down about 3% from the previous month and down about 5% from last year. Total frozen poultry supplies were down about 9% from the previous month and down about 7% from a year ago.   BEEF … Read More

Large commodity index funds, known as managed money, again increased their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday as hedgers boosted their total net short position. The information was made available by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in its weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday, which reports activity as of … Read More

Questions about whether Livestock Risk Protection premiums adjusted with volatility in the market like options do can be answered in the affirmative, said Mathew Kiersen, risk and business management specialist at South Dakota State University in a Livestock Marketing Information Center release called In The Cattle Markets. Like options, LRP has several moving parts, Diersen … Read More

The Federal Open Market Committee Wednesday cut the Fed Funds rate by 0.25 percentage point to a range of 4.25% to 4.5% as inflation was seen cooling, but indicated it expected fewer rate cuts next year than was expected. FOMC members this week projected a flatter GDP, unemployment rate and PCE inflation rate going forward … Read More

Last week’s average USDA choice beef cutout value was up from the previous four weeks and was the eleventh highest weekly value of 2024, showcasing the consumer and export demand for the product. In fact, a line graph’s pattern of the choice beef cutout value has woven its way around last year’s line all year, … Read More

The USDA expected the percentage of annual consumed US red meat imports to show an increase for 2024 and climb to near-record highs in 2025. In its monthly Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook report, the USDA said total red meat imports were influenced heavily by beef imports, which in 2019-2023 were an average 70.5% of … Read More

Large commodity index funds, or managed money, increased their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday for the twelfth straight week as hedgers raised their total net short position for the third straight week. In revealing the data, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report showed a … Read More