Cattle lost ground in three out of the four sessions for the week ending Thursday. Cash has been king and has helped pull cattle to unprecedent levels this fall, but this week marks the third week in a row that cash live cattle prices have closed lower, which in turn is pressuring the cattle market.
Cattle started the session opening with gains as feeder cattle starting the session sharply higher right out of the gate. Early support came from technical buying with bargain hunting and chart support helping cattle bounce higher. Light support also came from Friday’s Cold Storage report, which showed a 1% decline in beef in freezer vs last months but 1.5% above last year. But last week’s lower cash trade and a recovery in the grains around midsession caused cattle to fade its gains. The COT report showed funds trimmed their net long positions last week.
A rally occurred in the cattle market on Tuesday with both cattle contracts surging sharply higher. Live cattle opened the session with small gains but spent most of the morning trading in the red. Pressure came from a softer tone to the cash trade as cash bids have been lower for the past two weeks. Feeder cattle opened the session lower but bucked the trend and by midsession was seeing strong gains. Support spilled over from the lower grains. Technical buying gave cattle a little extra shove late.
Minor selling pressure returned to the cattle markets on Tuesday. Live cattle started the session on the defense but managed to shake off the early selling pressure and turn to trade with gains only to see those gains fade late in the session. Feeder cattle started the session lower and like the live cattle, brushed aside the selling pressure and rallied to post strong gains, only to see those gains fade late in the session. Early selling came from the government shut down and from the expectation of little to no news to give traders direction. Buy orders were uncovered around midsession once most months hit support. Late session selling hit the live cattle market due to a third week of lower cash.
Feeder cattle were supported early from news that there is a vaccine available to control the New World Screw Worm. Selling hit feeder cattle late due to spill over from the live cattle, but also due to spill over pressure from a strong grain complex. Last week’s cash activity in the north settled between $232 and $235.
Live cattle gapped lower on the opening bell but managed to trim session losses and end with double digit losses in the front month Dec but with triple digit losses in the deferred months. Feeder cattle also gapped lower on the opening bell and continued to trade lower throughout the session, ending with heavy triple digit losses. Live cattle were able to stage a small bounce after the opening bell, but feeder cattle posted their session highs right out of the gate. Live cattle were under pressure from the lack of a cash trade. A light cash trade was reported taking place at $230, $2 to $5 lower than last week. A stronger grain complex pressured the feeder cattle.
As of Sept 28, pasture and range conditions were estimated at 32% g/e, 33% fair, and 35% p/vp, down 2% from last week.
For the week, October Live cattle closed at $231.025 down 77.5 cents. October Feeder Cattle contracts closed at $357.175 up 17.5 cents.
Cattle Weekly Comments Oct 3
Cattle Weekly Comments Oct 3
Cattle lost ground in three out of the four sessions for the week ending Thursday. Cash has been king and has helped pull cattle to unprecedent levels this fall, but this week marks the third week in a row that cash live cattle prices have closed lower, which in turn is pressuring the cattle market.
Cattle started the session opening with gains as feeder cattle starting the session sharply higher right out of the gate. Early support came from technical buying with bargain hunting and chart support helping cattle bounce higher. Light support also came from Friday’s Cold Storage report, which showed a 1% decline in beef in freezer vs last months but 1.5% above last year. But last week’s lower cash trade and a recovery in the grains around midsession caused cattle to fade its gains. The COT report showed funds trimmed their net long positions last week.
A rally occurred in the cattle market on Tuesday with both cattle contracts surging sharply higher. Live cattle opened the session with small gains but spent most of the morning trading in the red. Pressure came from a softer tone to the cash trade as cash bids have been lower for the past two weeks. Feeder cattle opened the session lower but bucked the trend and by midsession was seeing strong gains. Support spilled over from the lower grains. Technical buying gave cattle a little extra shove late.
Minor selling pressure returned to the cattle markets on Tuesday. Live cattle started the session on the defense but managed to shake off the early selling pressure and turn to trade with gains only to see those gains fade late in the session. Feeder cattle started the session lower and like the live cattle, brushed aside the selling pressure and rallied to post strong gains, only to see those gains fade late in the session. Early selling came from the government shut down and from the expectation of little to no news to give traders direction. Buy orders were uncovered around midsession once most months hit support. Late session selling hit the live cattle market due to a third week of lower cash.
Feeder cattle were supported early from news that there is a vaccine available to control the New World Screw Worm. Selling hit feeder cattle late due to spill over from the live cattle, but also due to spill over pressure from a strong grain complex. Last week’s cash activity in the north settled between $232 and $235.
Live cattle gapped lower on the opening bell but managed to trim session losses and end with double digit losses in the front month Dec but with triple digit losses in the deferred months. Feeder cattle also gapped lower on the opening bell and continued to trade lower throughout the session, ending with heavy triple digit losses. Live cattle were able to stage a small bounce after the opening bell, but feeder cattle posted their session highs right out of the gate. Live cattle were under pressure from the lack of a cash trade. A light cash trade was reported taking place at $230, $2 to $5 lower than last week. A stronger grain complex pressured the feeder cattle.
As of Sept 28, pasture and range conditions were estimated at 32% g/e, 33% fair, and 35% p/vp, down 2% from last week.
For the week, October Live cattle closed at $231.025 down 77.5 cents. October Feeder Cattle contracts closed at $357.175 up 17.5 cents.