Thursday markets
Cattle futures staged a modest rebound today, trading between their 10- and 40-day moving averages.
Live cattle futures closed higher, with the October contract gaining $1.27 to $232.37 and the December contract up $1.47 to close at $234.15.
Cash trade was moderate, with 7,484 head sold. Live steers sold for $236-237, and dressed steers sold between $368-374.
On the formula side, 40,200 head averaging 934 lbs. sold for an average of $383.94.
Today’s slaughter is estimated to be 112,000 head, 5,000 head below a week earlier.
“Packer margins have been compressed this week and this week’s estimated slaughter is generally 560k head, down 5k from last week, although as of yesterday, slaughter was up 9k head from the prior week,” Cassie Fish, market analyst, wrote in The Beef.
Actual slaughter for the week ending Sept. 6 was 493,830 head. The average steer dressed weight was 958 lbs., 5 lbs. higher than the previous week.
“Also noteworthy is the seasonal rise in carcass weights, with steer carcass weights in the most recent report by USDA for the week ended September 6 at 958 pounds, up 5 pounds week over week and up 17 pounds year over year,” Fish wrote. “While record carcass weights have become common and have not been a bearish market factor, there is some growing concern that that could change this fall.”
Boxed beef prices continue to drop, with the Choice cutout down $2.37 to $385.81 and the Select cutout $5.06 lower to $361.31.
USDA’s Export Sales report for the week ending Sept. 11 showed beef net sales of 15,800 metric tons (mt) for 2025, up 31% from the previous week and 21% from the prior four-week average. The three largest buyers were South Korea (8,000 mt), Mexico (1,700 mt) and Indonesia (1,600 mt).
Feeder cattle
Feeder cattle also closed higher, with the September contract gaining $3.15 to close at $358.17 and the October contract up $2.60 to $351.72.
The CME Feeder Cattle Index was 27 cents lower to $361.36.
Corn futures were lower, with the December and March contracts down 3 cents to $4.23 and $4.41, respectively.
Kansas: Winter Livestock in Dodge City sold 2,913 head on Wednesday. Compared to the previous auction, steers over 700 lbs. sold $5-8 higher and heifers under 650 lbs. sold $5-10 higher. Steers under 700 lbs. and heifers under 650 lbs. sold $5-10 lower due to limited vaccinations. Benchmark steers averaging 760 lbs. sold for $349.50-373, averaging $368.02.
Nebraska: Bassett Livestock in Bassett sold 3,565 head on Wednesday. Compared to the previous auction two weeks ago, 850 lbs. steers traded $10 higher and 900-950 lbs. heifers traded steady to $6 lower. Benchmark steers averaging 792 lbs. sold for $361-378.25 and averaged $376.48.
Oklahoma: OKC West in El Reno sold 4,798 head on Wednesday. Compared to the last auction, feeder steers sold steady to $6 lower. Feeder heifers traded $10-15 lower in a light test. The best tested weight for feeder heifers was 700-750 lbs. and those were steady. Benchmark steers averaging 777 lbs. sold for $362-372.50 and averaged $364.25.
Wyoming: Torrington Livestock in Torrington sold 3,942 head on Wednesday. Compared to the last auction two weeks ago, feeder steers and heifers traded $3 lower. Benchmark steers averaging 772 lbs. sold between $380-399, averaging $391.27. — Charles Wallace, WLJ contributing editor
