Cattle Futures Fluctuate Amid Mixed Market Signals
Cash Trades and Exports Show Inconsistent Trends
Live cattle futures are seeing a mixed trend, with the expiring October contract rising to $193. The rest of the contracts on the board are fluctuating, showing changes of up to 22 cents. On the cash market, some trading occurred on Wednesday, with prices reported to be between $189 and $190. Today’s bids are again coming in at approximately $190. In the feeder cattle market, futures are down by 42 cents to $1, while the October contract increased by $1.10. The CME Feeder Cattle Index rose by 57 cents to reach $250.06 on October 29.
In recent export activity, beef sales totaled 13,854 MT for the week of October 24, down from the previous week. South Korea emerged as the leading buyer, importing 4,900 MT, followed by China with 3,200 MT. Additionally, sales of 5,700 MT for 2025 were recorded. Shipment totals for that week reached 15,737 MT, marking a decrease from the previous week, with 4,800 MT sent to South Korea and 2,900 MT to Japan.
According to the USDA’s report released Thursday morning, wholesale boxed beef prices have decreased. The price for choice boxes fell by $1.58 to $317.86/cwt, while select boxes decreased by $1.28 to $288.04. This adjusted the choice/select spread to $29.82. The USDA estimated the federally inspected cattle slaughter on Wednesday at 124,000 head, bringing the weekly total to 369,000. This is an increase of 2,000 head compared to the prior week, but it represents a drop of 4,972 head compared to the same week last year.
Oct 24 Live Cattle are priced at $193.000, up $4.600.
Dec 24 Live Cattle are valued at $186.650, up $0.225.
Feb 25 Live Cattle are listed at $186.825, down $0.225.
Oct 24 Feeder Cattle stand at $252.050, up $1.100.
Nov 24 Feeder Cattle are priced at $245.075, down $0.425.
Jan 25 Feeder Cattle are at $241.100, down $0.875.
On the date of publication, Austin Schroeder did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article are solely for informational purposes. For more details, please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
The views and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
