Download PDF The beef market hit a bit of an air pocket this week, with the Choice cutout dropping $8.02/cwt. to average $301.10 and the Select cutout losing $3.36/cwt. to average $297.69. Apparently, it is just too early for spring demand improvements to take hold. The northern section of the country experienced colder-than-normal temperatures and …
Download PDF The pork cutout gained a little more traction this week, increasing $1.83/cwt. to average $94.66 for the week. Negotiated cash hog prices were more sluggish, with the WCB only gaining $0.10 on a weekly average basis. That helped add a couple of dollars back on packer margins, which now stand at just under …
Download PDF The big event this week in the cattle and beef complex was a large sell-off in the futures that occurred on Tuesday. On that day, most active Jun finished down $3.22/cwt. No one seemed to be quite sure what triggered the selling. Long-time fundamental bears were sure that this was signaling the imminent …
Download PDF The pork cutout struggled a little this week, averaging $92.83, $0.10/cwt. lower than the week before. As expected, the cutout’s problem was caused by further deterioration in the value of the ham primal. Bellies were nearly unchanged on the week. The good news is that the retail items, and in particular the loins, …
Download PDF Beef packers managed to keep beef prices moving higher this week, with the Choice cutout adding $2.49/cwt. on a weekly average basis and the Select cutout gaining $2.10/cwt. However, by the end of the week the cutouts were showing some signs of fatigue. Cattle feeders managed to wrangle another $2+ gain in the …
Download PDF The pork cutout got back to its winning ways this week, advancing $1.13 on a weekly average basis to $92.93. The negotiated hog markets continued higher, with prices in the WCB region averaging $78.41, up $2.65 from the week before. This market is a forecaster’s dream. No need to worry about sharp changes …
Download PDF Light kills in the past few weeks has made it easier for packers to keep upward pressure on the cutouts. This week, the Choice cutout gained $4.39 on a weekly average basis in moving to $310.39 and the Select cutout added $4.52 on its way to $300.72. Unfortunately for them, they ended up …
Download PDF This was the second week in a row where gains in hog prices outpaced increases in the cutout. The cutout only added a paltry $0.23/cwt. on a weekly average basis while the NDD negotiated market was up $2.42. As a result, packer margins trended lower and now stand at just a little under …
Download PDF Another week, another increase in cash cattle prices. This week cattle feeders were able to coax another $2/cwt. out of packers as the cash trade nationally averaged a little over $185. Packers got a small consolation prize in the beef markets where the Choice cutout gained $2.80/cwt. on a weekly average basis in …
Download PDF Belly prices stumbled this week and that was enough to move the cutout below the previous week’s level. The cutout averaged $91.57, down $0.31/cwt from the week before. However, it isn’t all bad news because the belly primal is the only part of the carcass that is currently trending lower. All of the …