Feedlots held out for most of the week, waiting for higher bids on the cash market. Futures traded mostly steady on the live cattle front, but feeder cattle were pressured by rising corn prices, which are sitting around the $7 mark again.
Live cattle closed modestly higher, with the October contract up $1.13 to $146.45 and the December contract up 5 cents to $147.93.
Cash trade was light and picked up on Wednesday, with about 40,000 head selling between $145-148, averaging $146.73. Dressed steers sold between $228-230 and averaged $229.55.
“As we sit here Wednesday afternoon still wondering what bid it’s going to take to sell cash cattle this week, there’s one obvious point that can be drawn from the market over the last months, the fact feedlots are gaining more of the market’s leverage,” ShayLe Stewart, DTN livestock analyst, wrote in her Wednesday closing comments.
“Feedlots are pushing for higher prices again this week and seeming willing to roll their inventory over to next week if they don’t get the money they want.”
Total cash trade for the week ending Oct. 9 was 98,683 head. Live steers averaged $146.30, and dressed steers averaged $230.20.
The national weekly direct beef type price distribution for the week of Oct. 3-10 was the following on a live basis:
• Negotiated purchases: $146.32.
• Formula net purchases: $146.43.
• Forward contract net purchases: $143.60.
• Negotiated grid net purchases: $146.44.
On a dressed basis:
• Negotiated purchases: $230.30.
• Formula net purchases: $232.32.
• Forward contract net purchases: $227.68.
• Negotiated grid net purchases: $229.86.
Slaughter through Thursday was about 511,000 head, a thousand more than the same time a week earlier. Slaughter for a week earlier is estimated at 664,000 head. Actual slaughter for the week ending Oct. 1 was 667,186 head. Dressed steer weights were 917 lbs.
“Packer margins have narrowed to the lowest level, for the first full week in October since 2018,” Cassie Fish, market analyst for The Beef, wrote on Tuesday. “For any timeframe, this is the tightest margin since early 2020. Plants are running well Monday through Friday and packers continue to run hard.”
Boxed beef prices closed lower, with the Choice cutout down 83 cents to $246.53 and the Select cutout down $1.13 to $215.86.
Feeder cattle
Feeder cattle futures closed lower, with the October contract down 97 cents to $174.75 and the November contract down 32 cents to $176.10.
The CME Feeder Cattle Index was down $1.66 to $174.03.
Corn closed higher, with the December and March contracts up 22 cents a bushel to $6.97 and $7.05, respectively.
“As tensions between Russia and Ukraine only worsened over the weekend (with damage done to the Kerch bridge, and the 75 missiles that Russia fired), U.S. grain prices have perked back up as the likelihood of Ukraine getting grain shipped out of the country peacefully seems like a far-fetched idea at this point,” Stewart wrote on Monday.
Kansas: Winter Livestock in Dodge City sold 2,876 head Wednesday. Compared to the last auction, feeder steers 600-925 lbs. sold $8-14 higher. Steer calves 300-600 lbs. sold $7-10 lower. Heifers 400-900 lbs. sold unevenly steady. Benchmark steers averaging 758 lbs. sold between $168.50-177.50, averaging $176.19.
Missouri: Joplin Regional Stockyards in Carthage sold 5,000 head on Monday. Compared to a week earlier, at the mid-session, feeder steers and heifers sold steady. Benchmark steers averaging 854 lbs. sold for $172.
Nebraska: Bassett Livestock in Bassett sold 2,380 Wednesday. Compared to the previous auction, 500-600 lb. steers traded steady to $4 lower, and 900-950 lb. steers traded steady to $3 higher. There were a limited number of comparable offerings for heifers, with 950 lb. offerings trading steady. Benchmark steers averaging 733 lbs. sold for $180.
Oklahoma: Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City sold 9,400 head on Monday. Compared to a week earlier, feeder steers sold $1-3 lower. Feeder heifers sold unevenly steady. Demand was moderate to good, and quality was mostly average. Steer calves sold unevenly steady. Heifer calves sold $2-4 lower. Demand was moderate for calves.
South Dakota: Sioux Falls Regional Cattle Auction in Worthing sold 779 head on Monday. Compared to a week earlier, there were limited price comparisons in a light test. Steers and heifers of similar weights were not well compared. Steady to lower undertones were present. Demand for the light offering was moderate. Benchmark steers averaging 776 lbs. sold between $180-181, averaging $180.84. — WLJ
