Friday markets
It was a bleak day in the marketplace with futures plummeting lower.
Live cattle futures closed lower, down $3.90 on the February contract to $232.15 and down $4.45 on the April contract to $233.97.
“Pinpointing why the market is trading lower to such a notable degree is challenging because, up until this point this week, the market has been solely focused on its strong fundamental position,” said ShayLe Stewart, DTN livestock analyst, in her midday comments.
“But part of the market’s uncertainty could stem from the fact that Thursday afternoon, eight new cases of New World screwworm were detected in Mexico, or because there’s yet to be any cash cattle traded, which causes traders to become anxious,” she added.
Cash trade finally picked up today, with about 52,000 head sold. Live steers sold from $230-233.50, and dressed steers sold from $360-368. Total cash trade for the week through the afternoon was about 55,000 head.
Slaughter for the day is estimated at 92,000 head. Tomorrow’s slaughter is estimated at 1,000 head, bringing the week’s total slaughter to an estimated 562,000 head compared to 553,000 head a week earlier.
Boxed beef prices were higher on 88 loads. The Choice cutout gained $1.61 to close at $362.38, and the Select cutout gained 48 cents to close at $360.19.
Feeder cattle
“If you think the downturn in the live cattle complex is steep, don’t even take a glimpse at the feeder cattle contracts,” Stewart said.
Feeder cattle futures also nosedived lower. The January contract lost $6.50 to close at $361.92, and the March contract lost $8.10 to close at $356.45.
The CME Feeder Cattle Index lost 27 cents to close at $369.42.
Corn futures were modestly higher, up 4 cents on the March contract to $4.24 and up 4 cents on the May contract to $4.32. — Anna Miller Fortozo, WLJ managing editor
