Monday markets
Cattle futures were mixed today: Live cattle contracts saw declines while feeder cattle contracts saw small gains.
The February live cattle contract was down 17 cents to $114.87 and the April contract was down 15 cents to $121.70.
“Fundamentally, the live cattle market is prime with boxed beef prices continuing to scale higher and the cash cattle market finally able to push prices to higher levels,” commented ShayLe Stewart, DTN livestock analyst, in her midday comments.
Due to technical difficulties, USDA was unable to release a negotiated cash cattle report for the day before WLJ press time. Stewart noted that showlists this week are mixed with slightly higher numbers in Texas, but smaller numbers in Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado.
Last week, a total of 92,524 head negotiated cash cattle sold. Live steers averaged $112.41 and dressed steers averaged $177.50. A total of 202,158 head of formula cattle sold, with live steers and heifers averaging $177.73.
USDA was also unable to produce a report on boxed beef prices due to technical difficulties.
Today’s slaughter is projected at 117,000 head, a couple thousand head above last week and several thousand head below the same time last year. Last week’s slaughter totaled 653,000 head, compared to the week prior at 657,000 head.
Some processing plants will be undergoing scheduled maintenance over the next few weeks, which may slow down slaughter speed.
Feeder cattle
Feeder cattle contracts were higher even with a small gain in the corn contract. The March corn contract was up 3 cents to $5.50. The March feeder cattle contract was up 20 cents to $137.75 and the April contract up 32 cents to $141.07. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was reported up 41 cents to $136.43.
Stewart noted, “It helps that the cash cattle market was able to make leaps and bounds worth of progress last week and if the market can keep scaling higher, feeder cattle contracts should see some upside as well.”
Missouri: Joplin Regional Stockyards in Carthage sold 5,000 head Monday. Compared to the previous sale, steers sold steady and up to $7 higher on 520 lbs. and under. Heifers sold $2-6 higher. Benchmark steers averaging 772 lbs. sold between $132.50-139.50.
Oklahoma: Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City sold 10,500 head Monday. Compared to the previous sale, feeder steers sold $2-5 lower and feeder heifers sold $1-2 lower. Steer and heifer calves sold $2-4 higher on moderate to good demand. Benchmark steers averaging 720 lbs. sold between $128-141.50. — Anna Miller, WLJ editor
