Author: ploewen

Date: June 7th, 2023 Cattle futures started out slow yesterday but quickly caught another wave of buying with June live cattle setting a new all-time spot high at $180.25, August feeders closing in on the all-time spot high at $245.20 and November through April feeders reaching above the $250 level. So far this week, only some light volume cash fed cattle trade in the North at $190 live and $295 to $300 dressed with TX also reported some light volume at $182 live, all $2 to $5 higher than last week. I also saw a few bids starting in NE at $192 live. A recap of last week’s cash fed cattle trade showed feedlots selling 93,042 head of negotiated cash fat cattle (66,859 head for…

Date: June 6th, 2023 Cattle continued higher on Monday while lean hogs backed off. Live cattle made new contract highs again but feeders were not able to reach those levels as both feeders and lean hogs actually had inside trading days staying within the trading range of the previous session, last Friday. Sharply higher boxed beef along with lower corn prices were supportive for cattle while pork prices were also higher with bellies up $24.50 but cash prices during the day were steady to slightly lower. NATIONAL FEEDER & STOCKER CATTLE SUMMARY - WEEK ENDING 06/03/2023 RECEIPTS: Auctions Direct Video/Internet Total This Week: 99,800 30,400 3,900 134,100 Last Week: 147,400 36,700 33,700 217,800 Year Ago: 97,300 26,200 26,800 150,300 Compared to last week, steers and…

Date: May 30th, 2023 Sharply higher corn prices to end last week pressured feeders on Friday yet live cattle continued to hold gains. New contract highs hit yet again for live cattle with cash trade higher. Negotiated cash fed cattle trade wrapped up midweek with trade in the South from $170 to $174, mostly $171 to $172, $1 to $2 higher. Trade in the North reported at $180 to $183 live, $2 to $4 higher, and dressed trade at $285, $5 higher than the previous week. Weekly closes for livestock futures and meats…June Live Cattle +$1.62, August +$.87, August Feeders -$1.17, September -$.85, June Lean Hogs -$6.95, July -$8.35. Choice Boxed Beef +$2.83 at $303.93. Oklahoma Weekly Cattle Auction Summary Livestock Weighted Average Report for…

Date: May 16th, 2023 All livestock futures able to finish in the green except for the front month June live cattle contract. Cash is still premium to futures with delivery a couple weeks out so traders are leery of pushing too much without at least steady if not improved cash fed cattle trade this week. Last week's negotiated cash cattle trade totaled 81,474 head at an average of $176.41 live steers and $278.27 dressed. Of that, 71% (57,882 head) were committed to the nearby delivery while the remaining 29% (23,592 head) were committee for the deferred delivery. Feeders and lean hogs held triple digit gains as both took out nearby resistance which were last week’s highs. NATIONAL FEEDER & STOCKER CATTLE SUMMARY - WEEK ENDING…

Date: May 15th, 2023 Livestock futures finished the week triple digits higher and for the week while lean hogs were steady to higher. Weekly export sales in the meats were in neutral territory for beef and friendly for pork, just not as bullish as the past couple weeks. Negotiated cash fed cattle trade was again weaker this past week with trade in the South at $170 live, $2 lower than the week previous. Trade in the North at $176 to $177 live, $1 to $3 lower and dressed trade at $280, $1 lower than the previous week. USDA updated the meats balance sheets with 2024 beef production published for the first time and projected at 24.813 million pounds, the lowest since 2015, which was the…

Date: May 10th, 2023 All livestock futures finished triple digits higher on Tuesday. Corn under heavy pressure helped spark the rally in feeders. Only light volume negotiated cash fed cattle in the WCB to report so far this week at $177 live and $277 dressed, steady to $3 lower than last week. New contract lows for June lean hogs but then a key reversal higher for the day. There has been more interest in cash hogs recently, which is supportive, along with stellar pork export sales the past few weeks. Oklahoma National Stockyards Feeder Cattle - Oklahoma City, OK Livestock Weighted Average Report for 5/8/2023 - Final This Week: 8,319 Last Week: 6,770 Last Year: 6,532 Compared to last week: Feeder steers steady. Feeder heifers…

Cattle complex futures continued in their effort to bounce higher yesterday. Live cattle finished the session mild to moderately higher. Feeders were up over $1 in everything except for the front month May contract and it wasn’t far off that mark. After losing $3.55/cwt last week on the front month June live cattle, steady to only mildly lower Southern Plains cash feedlot trade didn’t feel as bad as you’d think. When April futures went off the board it was trading double digits premium to the June and then June promptly lost $4-$5 to widen the gap between cash and futures even more. Hedged cattle are enjoying the much wider than normal basis for May sales, but the size of the drop in futures still has…

Date: May 8th, 2023 Livestock futures last Friday were mixed but week over week changes were all sharply lower. Lean hogs hit the hardest on Friday, making new contract lows. Live cattle made new recent lows midweek while feeders charged lower again Friday for new recent lows. Negotiated cash fed cattle trade still pulling back. Trade in the South done early in the week mostly at $172 live, $1 lower than the week previous. Trade in the North ranging from $172 to $178 live and mostly $281 dressed, $1 to $3 lower than the week previous. Weekly closes for livestock futures and meats…June Live Cattle -$3.55, August -$4.27, May Feeders -$8.45, August -$9.30, June Lean Hogs -$7.92, July -$8.25. Choice Boxed Beef -$2.25 at $309.19…

Date: May 3rd, 2023 Cattle futures sharply lower yesterday, feeders breaking through nearby support levels, while lean hogs remain steady to higher. Cash fed cattle trade already began to develop at $172 live in TX and KS and $281 dressed in NE which is a $1 to $3 lower than last week. This provided the opportunity for sellers to jump in heavy on the futures yesterday. It also didn’t help that equites were hit hard yesterday as well. Seasonally, May is not a supportive month for cattle futures, but most felt this year would be different as we hit new all-time highs last month and bullish fundamentals are still in place. Oklahoma National Stockyards Feeder Cattle - Oklahoma City, OK Livestock Weighted Average Report for…

Date: May 1st, 2023 Cattle futures finished the week lower but most contracts still held week over week gains while lean hogs were triple digits higher last Friday and $5 higher for the week. Weekly export sales for beef were bearish at only 9,500 MT, but pork sales were a new marketing year high at 54,000 MT helping support the rally in hogs last week. Negotiated cash fed cattle trade off $2 to $5 from the week previous with trade in the South at $173 live and in the North from $176 to $180 live and $280 to $286 dressed. Futures and cash cattle have backed off recently from their new all-time highs, yet fundamentals are still bullish. Weekly closes for livestock futures and meats…April…