As of Thursday midday, live cattle futures rose between $3.02 and $4.30, driven by cash market strength. Cash sales in the South were reported at $224-225, with bids reaching $228 in the South and $235 in the North. Feeder cattle futures also surged, increasing by $4.17 to $4.92. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was up $2.04 as of June 3, averaging $303.52.
Beef export sales dropped to 8,978 metric tons for the week ending May 29, marking a five-week low, with South Korea purchasing 4,500 metric tons and Japan acquiring 2,800 metric tons. Actual shipments totaled 10,940 metric tons, the lowest for the year, with Japan receiving 3,300 metric tons and South Korea receiving 2,900 metric tons.
USDA reported a slaughter of 121,000 cattle on Wednesday, bringing the weekly total to 357,000, a decrease of 7,466 from the same week last year. Monthly Census data revealed 237.2 million pounds of beef shipped in April, a five-year low and down 7.3% from March.
