Live cattle futures increased between 75 cents and $1.25 on Thursday, while feeder cattle futures gained $1.95 to $2.90. Cash trade remains limited, with reported dressed sales at $365 in the North and live sales between $228-232. The Thursday morning Fed Cattle Exchange auction indicated no sales, with bids only at $230. The CME Feeder Cattle Index rose $4.92 to reach $368.07.
In related news, the USDA reported a 10,600 MT sale of beef for 2026 during the week of January 1, with South Korea purchasing 4,400 MT. October beef exports were at 201 million lbs, the lowest for that month since 2015, while imports increased by 6.68% from September to total 136,972 MT. In slaughter data, estimated cattle processing for the week reached 465,000 head, 10,732 head fewer than the same week last year.
