Shortened Kills Slow Cash Market
The approaching holidays caught up to the cattle market last week. Packers were able to hold the market steady at $119 with some cattle bringing $118. Only three of the four major packers participated in the trade. Packers that participated bought for a shortened Christmas week. Due to the short week, packers didn’t have quite the same appetite for cattle that they had over the last several weeks.
The best opportunity feeders have to keep the cash market from slipping away is limit their offerings over the next couple of weeks. Rumors on Friday indicated that a handful of cattle were trading for early January, and that they were priced over $120. If this opportunity and price turns out to be a fact, then it could potentially be a sign of what might be in store for the market once we get through the holidays.
