Latest News From Cattle Market Reports and Analysis

This first full-week following the Memorial Day holiday delivers signals cattle markets may see a second wave of downward pressure, the after-shocks of the COVID-19 earthquake.

Boxed beef cutout values continue to perform like the early days of Bitcoin trading, with Choice advancing $84 per cwt. since last Friday.

President Donald Trump told reporters Wednesday he has asked the Justice Department to look into allegations that U.S. meat packers broke antitrust law.

Early week fed cattle sales were steady at $95 to $100 per cwt., and $150 dressed. Friday, however, saw one major jump in and buy a few thousand cattle at $105, $5 higher than last week.

The beef cattle industry will receive $5.1 billion of CFAP funding to partially offset 2020 losses due to COVID-19. USDA expects to begin sign-up in early May and distribute payments by late May or early June.

COVID-19 has temporarily placed a restriction on the number of cattle that can be harvested in a given week. That scenario is usually a recipe for lower prices, but this week’s extremely light fed trade was steady.

Cattle feeding losses increased the week ending April 11, as cash prices fell $6 per cwt. on soft packer demand for market-ready cattle.

Cattle feeders experienced a week of light participation from packers as the impact of COVID-19 begins to hamper beef production facilities.

During a Facebook Live address to cattlemen Monday night, R-CALF CEO Bill Bullard outlined four actions his group proposes to "restore balance to our dysfunctional cattle markets."

The unprecedented events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a severe economic downturn and will impact livestock markets going forward.

Unprecedented volatility in fed cattle markets during March produced a strong increase in negotiated cash sales from feedlots to packers the final two weeks of the month.

The current cattle market situation creates significant disparities between the current supply and demand situation and expectations for coming supply and demand conditions.

Sharply higher beef cutout values produced windfall profits for beef packers last week while cattle feeders saw closeouts with average losses about steady, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

Panic meat buying emptied shelves and drove the Choice beef cutouts nearly $48 per cwt. higher. Cash fed cattle were higher, but not at a proportionate level.

Based on cash sales of $108.77, cattle closeouts lost an average of $90 per head the week ending March 15.

Cash cattle prices lost another $2 per cwt. last week, a decline of $7 over two weeks. Coupled with higher input costs on feeder cattle, the decline feedyards with an average $22 per head loss last week.

Cattle on feed data shows the largest number of cattle in feedlots during February since 2008, while placements were 99.4% of year ago, a little smaller than expected.

Despite a $2 decline in cash fed cattle prices, feedyard closeouts reported positive mid-winter results while packer margins held firm.

NAFTA was a trade pact written in the early 1990s. Derrell Peel, an extension livestock specialist with Oklahoma State University, is one who aided and gave his insights when trade negotiators were writing the deal.

Cattle feeders continue to find modest profits on a cash basis despite last week's $2 per cwt. market retreat.

Despite an average $1 decline in cash fed cattle prices last week, cattle feeding margins remained solidly profitable on a cash basis.

Widespread wildfires mean Australian cattle and beef production will be reduced for the foreseeable future and rebuilding, whenever it can begin, will take several years.

Cattle feeding profit margins exceeded beef packer margins last week for the first time in more than two years as cash cattle prices have increased 20% since September.

Beef packers saw their margins decline to the lowest level since before the Tyson packing plant fire August 9 as beef cutout prices declined and cash cattle prices increased.

Feedyards saw closeouts improve dramatically last week after the cash cattle market posted its third consecutive week of higher prices.

Last week’s $1 increase in cash fed cattle prices did little for feedyard profits, but the $6.40 rally in wholesale beef prices added another $25 onto already large packer margins.

The combination of shrinking packer profits and smaller feedyard losses over the past six weeks has reduced the packer/feeder margin spread by 27%, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

Last week's $2 rally in cash cattle prices helped narrow the spread between feedyard losses and packer profits.

Losses continued to grow for feedyards and the spread between feeder losses and packer profits only widened with a $1.50 per cwt. decline in cash cattle prices last week.

Beef packer continued with a stranglehold on cattle markets last week, buying a few cattle to fill their needs at lower money and keeping operating margins historically high.

Beef packers continued to maintain their leverage on cattle markets heading into the holiday-shortened first week of September.

The cash market for fed cattle last week gave some relief to feeders and overall market sentiment in the wake of the prior week’s $5/cwt. decline.

Cattle feeding margins slipped further into the red last week on soft cash prices, while packer margins climbed to extreme heights.

This year's weather extremes will play a role in the success of calf marketing programs.

As expected, beef packer margins jumped wildly higher the week ending Aug. 17, while cattle feeding margins slipped into the red.

The Sterling Beef Profit Tracker reports average cattle feeding closeouts were in the black last week, but with little room to spare.

Average cattle feeding losses totaled $106 per head for the week ending June 21.

Cattle feeding profit margins retreat further with a weaker cash market and limited packer interest.

Last week's $2 per cwt. decline in cash cattle prices left feedyard margins at near breakeven levels.

Cattle feeding margins are rapidly declining as cash cattle prices retreat from spring highs

Cattle feeding margins improved $43 per head last week as cash prices gained nearly $2 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins improved $43 per head last week as cash prices gained nearly $2 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins improved $16 per head last week as cash prices inched higher less than $1 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins declined by $80 per head last week as cash prices slumped $1 to $2 per cwt.

Profit margins for cattle sold for slaughter last week declined $55 per head, according to the Sterling Profit Tracker.

Cattle feeding margins improved modestly on higher cash prices last week. Packer margins declined slightly.

Industry-wide average cattle feeding margins improved last week, while pork producer margins declined.

Feedyard closeouts saw modest improvement last week, but cattle feeders remain frustrated by their inability to push the cash market higher.

Cash cattle prices improved $1 per cwt., helping lift feeding margins to $118 per head, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

Both feeding and packing profit margins exceeded $100 per head last week with a $1 rally in the cash fed cattle trade.