Feeder Cattle Higher Ahead of July 4th
Cash fed cattle trade was called moderately active in the holiday-shortened week prior to the Fourth of July. Cattle traded in the North at mostly $95 to $96 live and $150 to $155 dressed. Cattle in the South traded in a range of $92 to $96, with the largest volume at $94 to $95, or mostly $3 lower than the previous week.
Feeder cattle sold at auction last week steady to $2 higher, according to Agricultural Marketing Service reports. Lighter receipts were noted at many auctions due to the holiday.
“Drought conditions in some Southern and Northern Plains regions are on the minds of those that are affected,” AMS said. “Cattle in those areas are coming to the sales off dry summer grass or coming out of grow yards. Several cows are headed to town in Wyoming and Western Nebraska. Order buyers started doing business on very good demand at the Green City (MO) Livestock Auction offering around 4200 head with near 250 head of 900-950-pound steers averaging 919 pounds sold with a weighted average price of $132.41.”
Boxed-beef cut-out prices continue under pressure with Thursday’s close for Choice at $205.44, down $1.73 from the previous Friday. Select closed Thursday at $198.76 per cwt., down $0.09 from the previous week.
USDA released its crop acreage report last week and corn acres were estimated at 92.0 million acres, which was down 4.9 million acres from March’s Prospective Plantings estimate. Corn markets rallied on the news on Thursday, and again on Monday.
Related stories:
Feeder Cattle Higher, Fed Cattle Lower
