On balance, economic activity slowed since the previous Beige Book report from the Federal Reserve Oct. 18, with four of the 12 districts reporting modest growth, two indicating conditions were flat to slightly lower and six noting some declines in activity. Those observations came with the latest Beige Book report on economic activity Wednesday.   … Read More

It looks like live cattle futures deliveries early next month may be limited to non-existent, a market analyst suggested. The weekly average five-market fed steer price from the USDA last week was $176.77 per cwt, while the Dec futures settlement price Tuesday was $171.85, for a basis (cash minus futures) of $4.92.  With cash prices … Read More

Agricultural credit conditions in the Federal Reserve Bank’s Tenth District softened during the third quarter, a Bank Report said. The report was authored by Kansas City Federal Reserve Economists Nate Kauffman and Ty Kreitman, located in the Omaha, Neb., branch.  The Federal Reserve’s Tenth District encompasses Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming, the northern half of … Read More

Cattle markets continue the decline from September into November, said Stephen Koontz, Colorado State University agricultural economist at Colorado State University in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets. Much of that movement lower could, and should, have been anticipated, Koontz said.  The underlying supply and demand fundamentals did not support … Read More

Total red meat supplies in US freezers on Oct. 31 were down slightly from the previous month and down about 14% from last year, said the USDA’s monthly Cold Storage report, which catalogs the amount of a host of commodities in freezers. Total pounds of beef in freezers were up about 6% from the previous … Read More

Pasture, Rangeland and Forage Rainfall Index insurance (PRF) continues to gain popularity, said Matthew Diersen, risk and business management specialist at South Dakota State University, in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets. PRF is insurance against low precipitation that may be correlated with reduced feed production, Diersen said.  PRF has … Read More

Beef demand the last few years has been phenomenal, pushing fed cattle prices sharply higher from their COVID lows, said Nevil Speer, owner of Turkey Track Consulting in Bowling Green, KY. Weekly USDA five-area weighted average fed steer prices rose $95 per cwt from July 2020 to June 2923, going from $94.87 per cwt to … Read More