Cash cattle trades were called light in all three major trading areas as packers seemed to have plenty of inventory. Weekly harvest levels recovered after the holiday-shortened schedules.
Cattle traded in the North at $156 to $157 per cwt. live and $250 to $252 per cwt. dressed, steady to $1 lower on a live basis. Cattle in the south traded at $156 per cwt., $1 lower. Feeder cattle were mixed at $2 higher to $3 lower. Calves traded in a wide range, mostly $2 to $8 higher.
Wholesale beef prices moved lower for the week. Choice boxed beef closed Friday at $276.62 per cwt., $6.37 per cwt. lower than the previous week. Select boxed beef traded at $256.89 per cwt., $2.45 per cwt. lower.
Total cattle slaughter was estimated at 661,000 head, 98,000 head higher than the previous week and 11,000 head more than the same week in 2022. The year-to-date was estimated at 4.786 million head, 133,000 head less than last year.
Nearby February live cattle ended the week at $157.725 up 17.5 cents after trading lower most of the day. The close marked a 95-cent rise on the week. March feeder futures tumbled $1.40 to $182.875 at Friday’s close, which represented a weekly decline of $2.775
