Friday markets
“It was a lethargic day for the cattle contracts as traders let the contracts drift lower through the day’s end,” wrote ShayLe Stewart, DTN livestock analyst, in her closing comments.
Live cattle futures were slightly lower, down 12 cents on the August contract to $223.55 and down 50 cents on the October contract to $219.82.
Cash trade for the day totaled about 17,000 head. Live steers sold from $230-242.50, and dressed steers sold from $376-382. Total cash trade for the week so far is about 45,000 head.
“The week’s total volume has been rather thin, so it will be interesting to see how that affects next week’s market. One could argue that packers will need to be more aggressive to ensure they aren’t short bought in the weeks to come,” Stewart said.
Slaughter for the day is estimated at 101,000 head. With tomorrow’s slaughter projected at 4,000 head, total slaughter for the week is estimated at 563,000 head.
Boxed beef prices were mixed on 103 loads. The Choice cutout gained 27 cents to close at $373.55, and the Select cutout lost $2.35 to close at $351.49.
Feeder cattle
“With a lack of technical support from the live cattle complex, the feeder cattle market may have had all the support it could have ever wished for in the countryside, but traders remained skeptical from a sheer technical standpoint, and that’s why the contracts closed lower,” Stewart said.
Feeder cattle futures were lower, with the August contract down $1 to $324 and the September contract down $1.22 to $324.20.
Corn futures were higher, up 6 cents to $4.08 on the September contract and up 6 cents to $4.27 on the December contract.
The CME Feeder Cattle Index gained 26 cents to close at $322.17. — Anna Miller Fortozo, WLJ managing editor
