Large commodity index funds, or managed money, increased their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended last Tuesday, Jan. 28, while hedgers moved their total net short position higher. The data came from the weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.   FUNDS BUY MORE CATTLE … Read More

Friday’s annual USDA Cattle (Inventory) report showed the US cattle herd on Jan. 1 was down about 1% from a year earlier, but will the report move cash and futures cattle markets substantially?  No, say some market analysts and traders because the strength seen in both markets over the last several months and years has … Read More

Cattle markets are off to a hot start in 2025, observed Will Secor, Extension livestock economist, at the University of Georgia, in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets. All through the supply chain from beef markets to feeder cattle markets, prices are up significantly from last year, Secor said.  Continuing … Read More

Kansas feedlot fed steer sales to packers, or closeouts, dropped to an annual 2024 low in November but could climb again with December data. The information came from a Kansas State University Extension service survey of select feedlots around the state, the information gathered is turned over to the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver … 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

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