Download PDF The cash cattle market finally stabilized this week with prices in the South steady at mostly $181 and prices in the North a little higher at $181-182. When the dust settles and all of the data is in, I’m looking for the 5-area average to be near $181.75, which would be up about …
Download PDF Coming into the week, it appeared that the cash cattle market was poised to trade steady or only a little lower, but outside forces intervened once again. On Thursday, there was news of anthrax infecting part of a cattle herd in Wyoming and that sent the futures sharply lower, prompting cattle feeders in …
Download PDF The beef cutouts continued lower this week, with the Choice dropping $5.20/cwt. to average $310.63 and the Select losing $3.31 on its way to $298.02. This week’s decline was largely driven by a big drop in the loin primal and a sharp down move in the price of 50s. Choice striploins were responsible …
Download PDF A wave of technical selling washed over live cattle futures on Tuesday and that was just more than cattle feeders could bear. Cash trade was triggered $2 lower at $183 in the South, while $184-187 was common in the North. When the all of the prices are compiled on Monday, I expect the …
Download PDF The beef market continued to firm this week with the Choice cutout adding $1.92 on a weekly average basis and the Select cutout up $2.15. The cattle market went the other direction, with trade in the South down $1 at $185 and the live trade in the North down $3 to $190. Packer …
Download PDF It was a bit of a “good news/bad news” week in the US cattle and beef complex. The good news was that packers were finally able to end the slide in the cutouts, as the Choice added $1.01 on a weekly average basis and the Select was up $3.23. The bad news was …
Download PDF The previous week’s light kill didn’t seem to influence the cutouts much this week as the Choice dropped $4.67/cwt. on a weekly average basis and the Select was down $4.32/cwt. That’s bad news for packers, particularly since cattle feeders managed to reverse the direction of cash cattle prices this week, with prices in …
Download PDF The cash cattle market continued to ease this week, with the live trade in the North coming in at $196, down $2 from the previous week. In the South however, prices held steady at $188. My best guess at what USDA will report for the 5-area price on Monday is $193.50, down about …
Download PDF Prices in the cattle and beef complex finally took a step back this week. It started on Tuesday when the AM Choice cutout printed down almost $5 and that prompted the futures to move sharply lower. It was almost like a game of musical chairs that had run too long and everyone was …
Download PDF Nobody told beef buyers that the dog days of summer are upon us because they were busy paying up for beef like it was early spring. The Choice cutout added $6.25/cwt. this week on its way to averaging $329.96 and the Select cutout was up $1.60 on a weekly average basis as it …