Live cattle futures closed the Thursday session with contracts up 40 to 65 cents and off the highs. Cash trade has been quiet so far this week, with a few light sales of $200 in KS on Wednesday. Feeder cattle slipped back on Thursday with futures down a tick to 75 cents at the close. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was back up $2.54 on March 13, with the average price at $281.25.
USDA’s Export Sales report showed beef bookings in the week of 3/6 at 14,331 MT, back up from last week. The largest buyer was Japan at 4,600 MT, with 3,000 MT sold to South Korea and 2,500 MT to China. Shipments were tallied at a 5-week high of 15,930 MT. South Korea and Japan were the top destinations of 4,400 MT each, with 2,500 MT to China.
Commodity Bulletin: From crude oil to coffee, this FREE newsletter is for industry pros and rookies alike
Thursday afternoon’s USDA National Wholesale Boxed Beef report showed prices lower, with the Chc/Sel narrowing to $12.22. Choice boxes were down $1.41 at $319.69/cwt, with Select 6 cents lower at $307.47. The Thursday Federally inspected cattle slaughter was estimated at 121,000 head by the USDA, taking the weekly total to 483,000 head. That is 16,000 head above the previous week and 10,536 larger than the same week last year.
Apr 25 Live Cattle closed at $202.050, up $0.650,
Jun 25 Live Cattle closed at $198.275, up $0.400,
Aug 25 Live Cattle closed at $195.950, up $0.400,
Mar 25 Feeder Cattle closed at $280.225, down $0.025,
Apr 25 Feeder Cattle closed at $279.975, down $0.750,
May 25 Feeder Cattle closed at $281.525, down $0.350,
On the date of publication,
did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy
here.
More news from Barchart
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
