Cattle started the week off on the defense but found support and rallied the rest of the week, posting solid gains by the end of the week Thursday. Early selling was tied to profit taking after cattle posted a few strong closes the previous week. Technical buying helped to push cattle higher early in the week, but a stronger cash trade really gave cattle support late in the we
Cattle opened the week steady to higher but ran into a buzz saw about 15 minutes into the session, which resulted in both cattle contracts dropping to post $3 to $4 losses early in the day. Slowly cattle managed to claw their way back but failed to recover all of the session losses. Early support spilled over from last Wednesday and Friday’s session which had cattle posting strong gains. But once the small trader buying started to slow down, profit taking stepped. A late surge in cash bids last week added support. Gains were trimmed by a disappointing export sale for the week ending Oct 23. Beef exports were estimated at 10,886 MT, a 5-week low.
Tuesday’s session saw cattle gap higher and extended session gains throughout the session. Feeder cattle hit limit up at one point but did not have the strength to hold. The volatility in the cattle continues to be the main attraction as there really is no reason for yesterday’s big drop or today’s support rally. A stronger stock market helped give cattle some support, as did the slaughter report. Year to date cattle slaughter pace through Oct is about 7% below last year. Cow slaughter is 11% behind while beef cow slaughter is 18% behind last year. Bull slaughter is 10% behind. Steer slaughter is down 5% and heifer slaughter is down 3%. Average dressed wights are up 3%. But the biggest surprise came in the cash feeder cattle index. The index dropped $10.18 to $319.70, a full $10 below futures. This is the first time in a long time cash is not leading futures. Still waiting on cash to trade this week. Last week’s cash traded between $208 and $210.
Both live and feeder cattle opened lower Wednesday but managed to quickly turn higher. Gains were trimmed late in the session, but both markets still closed higher. The gains in the stock market and the lower grains supported cattle. Gains were limited by slow cash trade this week.
Buying continued to push cattle higher and extended gains on Thursday. But as the case has been, cattle faded their gains around midsession fading back to see most months touch steady levels. Buying returned and cattle rebounded higher but never got back to session highs before closing. Early support came from reports of another new world screw worm case 120 miles south of the US Mexican border. Higher cash added support. The cash feeder cattle index has made a recovery, now trading at $337.78, up $5.42. The cash index is now $1.20 over futures. The week of Oct 30 showed beef exports at 14,499 MT.
For the week, Dec live cattle closed at $227.15 up $11.575. Jan feeder cattle closed at $339.05 up $15.075.
Cattle Weekly Comments December 5
Cattle Weekly Comments December 5
Cattle started the week off on the defense but found support and rallied the rest of the week, posting solid gains by the end of the week Thursday. Early selling was tied to profit taking after cattle posted a few strong closes the previous week. Technical buying helped to push cattle higher early in the week, but a stronger cash trade really gave cattle support late in the we
Cattle opened the week steady to higher but ran into a buzz saw about 15 minutes into the session, which resulted in both cattle contracts dropping to post $3 to $4 losses early in the day. Slowly cattle managed to claw their way back but failed to recover all of the session losses. Early support spilled over from last Wednesday and Friday’s session which had cattle posting strong gains. But once the small trader buying started to slow down, profit taking stepped. A late surge in cash bids last week added support. Gains were trimmed by a disappointing export sale for the week ending Oct 23. Beef exports were estimated at 10,886 MT, a 5-week low.
Tuesday’s session saw cattle gap higher and extended session gains throughout the session. Feeder cattle hit limit up at one point but did not have the strength to hold. The volatility in the cattle continues to be the main attraction as there really is no reason for yesterday’s big drop or today’s support rally. A stronger stock market helped give cattle some support, as did the slaughter report. Year to date cattle slaughter pace through Oct is about 7% below last year. Cow slaughter is 11% behind while beef cow slaughter is 18% behind last year. Bull slaughter is 10% behind. Steer slaughter is down 5% and heifer slaughter is down 3%. Average dressed wights are up 3%. But the biggest surprise came in the cash feeder cattle index. The index dropped $10.18 to $319.70, a full $10 below futures. This is the first time in a long time cash is not leading futures. Still waiting on cash to trade this week. Last week’s cash traded between $208 and $210.
Both live and feeder cattle opened lower Wednesday but managed to quickly turn higher. Gains were trimmed late in the session, but both markets still closed higher. The gains in the stock market and the lower grains supported cattle. Gains were limited by slow cash trade this week.
Buying continued to push cattle higher and extended gains on Thursday. But as the case has been, cattle faded their gains around midsession fading back to see most months touch steady levels. Buying returned and cattle rebounded higher but never got back to session highs before closing. Early support came from reports of another new world screw worm case 120 miles south of the US Mexican border. Higher cash added support. The cash feeder cattle index has made a recovery, now trading at $337.78, up $5.42. The cash index is now $1.20 over futures. The week of Oct 30 showed beef exports at 14,499 MT.
For the week, Dec live cattle closed at $227.15 up $11.575. Jan feeder cattle closed at $339.05 up $15.075.