Brad Kooima of Kooima Kooima Varilek says cattle futures recovered nicely from Friday’s selloff with some contracts making new highs for the move, pricing in record cash cattle trade. Grain markets are seeing fund buying with soybeans and meal leading on dry weather forecasts for Argentina.
Looking back, 2024 was mostly a continuation of the story that has been developing since 2022.
Bryan Doherty, Total Farm Marketing, says corn ended lower on a combination of profit taking and farmer selling after running into chart resistance.
Cattle harvest was down last week, but carcass weights remain record breaking. Q4 tends to be the period most prone to follow historical seasonal patterns for carcass cutout prices.
As agriculture faces multiple challenges, USDA’s latest net farm income forecast is masking the reality for farmers. While livestock margins have improved for 2024, high input costs and below breakeven prices for row crops means margins could be the worst in nearly 20 years.
Harvested fed steer and heifer head counts outpaced the same weeks in 2023, with 501K and 492K in the past two weeks.
How Low Will Grain Prices Go?
Futures markets have always been a source of consternation. The reason for angst generally falls on the speculators, but that blame is often misplaced.
Soybeans Make New Lows....Again and Pull down Corn and Wheat
Grains Trade Weather and China Economic News
Hogs Bounce Off Contract Lows
“Reputation cattle” is a term you’ll hear often when cattle prices are discussed. What is “reputation” in the cattle market? How do you build it? And what is it worth?
The latest Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor, a survey of nearly 70 ag economists from across the U.S., shows the lack of exports, as well as the current crop prices, are eroding outlooks on the crops side. While strong beef demand and cheaper feed prices are creating more optimism in cattle.
New proposed USDA rule will better protect farmers, ranchers, and other covered market participants by making clearer how prohibitions on unfair practices will be enforced under the Packers and Stockyards Act.
Ag markets are mostly lower Monday except cattle and nearby soybeans. The record cash cattle trade is trumping the bearish Cattle on Feed Report, says Scott Varilek, Kooima Kooima Varilek.
USDA offers educational events for cattle producers and feeders who want a better understanding of factors contributing to the market value of cattle, and how these factors can inform marketing and production decisions.
Shorter production and processing schedules have produced the desired effect for packers – a rally in wholesale beef markets. Feeders gain more marketing leverage.
Meat and poultry industry trade groups were quick to criticize USDA’s announcement of changes to the Packers and Stockyards Act claiming the changes add unnecessary regulations and costs.
The set of products included in total by-product values is quite varied and includes edible offals, inedible offals, meat. bone and blood meal, edible and inedible tallow, hides, and pharmaceutical products.
The reliability of marbling is making a difference – and cattle feeders are taking advantage. With real dollars at stake, more cattle are committed to negotiated sales and betting on the grid is paying off.
Even with strong demand and historically high prices for calves and feeder cattle this winter, the Hereford and Hereford-influenced sale at Mitchell Livestock Marketing in South Dakota Feb. 15 was a head-turner.
Imports and exports [both product and cattle] create value and provide opportunity for all trading partners, thereby underpinning the reason international trade exists. A review of data confirming the value of trade.
Following up on a recent column, Nevil Speer reports on the advice from a seasoned grain analyst: Three things that you should do for success in 2024, plus, four things NOT to do. Remember, it’s “you versus you.”
The beef market is set to rapidly adjust to changes in consumer buying habits. This removes demand pressure from ribs and tenderloins, realigning the contribution of those cuts to a smaller percentage of carcass value.
The most important thing largely revolves around our perspective, and subsequent management, of risk (or lack thereof). Eleven essential tips for risk management.
For cow-calf producers, fall is often a time for preconditioning, weaning and marketing calves. While prices will likely be towards the top end this year, could you still be leaving money on the table?
With cattle prices strong, serious inventory issues continue as the USDA is set to release the newest cattle on feed report on Oct. 20. Here’s what experts are saying about the upcoming report and herd expansion.
Cattle prices have responded to lower cattle inventory. Yet, with increasing costs of maintaining a cow, producers may wonder: to increase revenue in 2023, is it worth retaining or backgrounding calves?
Both live and feeder cattle futures hit record highs this week as a function of historically tight supplies. Yet, the question remains—how long could these strong prices last?
Could the optimism in the cattle industry be fueled by profitability? With cattle prices reaching record highs, it’s important to consider whether these high prices are equating to black ink on the balance sheet.