Drought in the western US and the dry conditions in the upper Midwest are likely to expand while pastures and crops in the central and Southeastern states have a greater chance of seeing a more normal pattern, the National Weather Service said Thursday. The NWS’ Climate Prediction Center also said it expects drought improvement across … Read More

Cash cattle marketers have few friends this week after prices last week slid $4 per cwt and took cattle feeding margins even deeper into the red. The weekly Sterling Profit Tracker from Sterling Marketing in Vale, Ore., and published by AgWeb said last week’s price slide ripped $77 a head in value away from cattle … Read More

Debate continues to swirl over the direction of slaughter cattle prices as they reach a decision point in the year.  Will they follow normal trends lower or build support? History says slaughter cattle prices should peak in mid-April and work lower into the dog days of summer.  However, many traders say the market dynamics have … Read More

Cattle slaughter last week reached an estimated 502,000 head, according to the USDA, down 23,000 head or 4.38%, from 525,000 the previous week and the lowest this year.  But just looking at the raw slaughter data does not tell the whole story. A graph from the Livestock Marketing Information Center shows how weekly slaughter compares … Read More

4-13-15 – Managed money’s net long position in live cattle futures rose in the latest week through a combination of fresh buying new long positions and light covering of short positions, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission said. In its weekly Commitments of Traders report for the week ended Tuesday, the CFTC said managed money, or … Read More

Managed money’s net long position in live cattle futures rose in the latest week through a combination of fresh buying new long positions and light covering of short positions, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission said. In its weekly Commitments of Traders report for the week ended Tuesday, the CFTC said managed money, or large speculators, … Read More

The USDA is predicting even more total red meat and poultry production this year than it did last month as higher beef and pork output more than offsets lower turkey production. The USDA made its outlook known Thursday in its monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report where it left its prediction on chicken … Read More