On Tuesday, live cattle futures exhibited fluctuations, with contracts closing down 40 cents to up 17 cents. Cash trade remained subdued, with last week’s dressed trade at $384-386 in the North and live action between $243-245. Southern sales were noted at $235-237. Feeder cattle futures registered gains of $1.50 to $2.05, while the CME Feeder Cattle Index rose by $2.81 to reach $344.98 as of August 18.
USDA Wholesale Boxed Beef prices increased on Tuesday, showing a widening Chc/Sel spread of $27.44. Choice boxes rose by $2.96 to $407.20, and Select boxes increased by $2.62 to $379.76. Estimated cattle slaughter for Tuesday was 116,000 head, bringing the weekly total to 216,000 head, which is a decrease of 1,000 head from the previous week and down 14,056 head compared to the same week in 2024.
