Live cattle futures saw significant gains on Wednesday, with prices rising between $1.07 and $2.95. During the Central Stockyards Fed Cattle Exchange auction, 519 of the 2,652 head offered sold at $186 per hundredweight (cwt) in Texas, with some bids reaching $188.50 via the BidTheGrid™ method. Feeder cattle futures also increased, closing up by $3.07 to $3.87. The CME Feeder Cattle Index stood at $247.29, down 9 cents as of October 1.
The USDA reported that wholesale boxed beef prices decreased in the Wednesday PM report, with Choice boxes down 36 cents at $299.81/cwt and Select boxes falling $1.37 to $283.93. The Chc/Select spread widened to $15.88. Additionally, estimated federally inspected cattle slaughter reached 124,000 head on Wednesday, bringing the weekly total to 367,000 head, which is 4,000 head above the previous week, but 6,888 head lower than the same week last year.
As of the close: Oct 24 Live Cattle at $187.425 (up $2.950), Dec 24 Live Cattle at $187.700 (up $2.525), Feb 25 Live Cattle at $188.400 (up $2.225), Oct 24 Feeder Cattle at $249.725 (up $3.575), Nov 24 Feeder Cattle at $248.550 (up $3.875), and Jan 25 Feeder Cattle at $242.075 (up $3.625).
