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Live cattle futures are trading lower by 30 cents to $1.10 on Thursday, with cash trade yet to commence this week. Last week’s sales were reported at $185-187 in the South and $193 in the North. The Central Stockyards Fed Cattle Exchange recorded no sales for the 944 heads listed in Thursday’s online auction, maintaining a similar trend from Wednesday. Feeder cattle futures are showing losses between 65 cents and $1.50, with the CME Feeder Cattle Index down $0.23 at $245.32 as of August 13.
Beef export sales reached a calendar year high of 28,122 metric tons, while actual shipments fell to a 16-week low of 14,114 metric tons. The USDA’s wholesale Boxed Beef report on Thursday indicated an increase, with Choice boxes up $2.09 to $316.97 and Select boxes up 83 cents to $301.33, widening the Chc/Select spread to $15.64. Estimated weekly slaughter stands at 356,000 head, down 7,000 from the previous week and 10,991 below the same week last year.
Current live cattle prices are: Aug 24 at $184.300 (down $0.300), Oct 24 at $181.075 (down $1.050), Dec 24 at $180.975 (down $0.625), and feeder cattle prices: Aug 24 at $247.025 (down $0.875), Sep 24 at $243.700 (down $0.650), and Oct 24 at $240.875 (down $1.225).
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