Broad-based measures of farmer sentiment improved in July as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer index rose eight points to 113. The Index of Current Conditions increased by 10 points to 100 and the Index of Future Expectations at 119 was seven points higher than a month earlier. James Mintert, at the Purdue Center … Read More

June exports of US beef reached the highest value in nearly two years, according to data released by the USDA and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation. While June pork exports were lower year-over-year, shipments through the first half of the year remained ahead of the record value pace of 2023, the USMEF said … Read More

Agriculture and energy are becoming more tightly connected as renewable energy increases demand for input crops and creates alternative income opportunities for farms, said an Economic Bulletin from the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank Tuesday. KC Fed Economists Nate Kauffman and Ty Kreitman, authors of the bulletin, said, industry experts underscored these links at the … Read More

It’s beginning to look like consumers in general are turning to other cuts of beef as unemployment and inflation bite harder on the pocketbook. Beef trimmings prices are rising while some middle meats are declining, although just how much is because of seasonal changes, economic realities or supply issues is hard to parse. Econ-101 taught … Read More

Large commodity index investment firms, known as managed money, increased their collective net long live cattle futures position during the week ended Tuesday as hedgers boosted their total net short position. The data came from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report.   MANAGED MONEY BUYS CATTLE   Tuesday, managed money had … Read More

Beef and cattle markets always attempt to balance supply and demand, and the current increased arbitrage between fed and non-fed beef markets indicates a very unusual market situation – one reflecting an excess in fat and a shortage of lean. Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University livestock marketing specialist, in a letter called Cow-Calf Corner, said … Read More

The USDA’s revised 2024 forecast for China’s pork imports anticipated a 21% decline year on year to 1.5 million tonnes, the lowest since 2019. If realized, the USDA’s Livestock and Poultry: World Markets and Trade report said China’s 2024 imports will return to levels similar to those before China’s outbreaks of African swine fever, which … Read More