After strong early support, apparent profit taking and another massive purge in equity markets put a lid on Cattle futures Thursday. Undeveloped cash fed cattle trade stalled traders, as well.
Live Cattle futures closed narrowly mixed, but mostly marginally lower (52¢ lower to 27¢ higher).
Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of 51¢ lower (2¢ to $1.05 lower in spot Mar).
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 84¢ lower on Thursday afternoon at $208.53/cwt. Select was 65¢ higher at $203.79.
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Investors renewed their massive selloff in equities on Thursday, pushing major U.S. financial indices sharply lower. Apparently, it was continued worries over increasing treasury yields, tied closely to interest rates and the expectation that business returns will decline in tandem and/or accelerate inflation.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 1,032 points lower. The S&P 500 closed 100 points lower. The NASDAQ closed 274 points lower.
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Last year was a record breaker for U.S. red meat exports, with beef export value exceeding $7 billion for only the second time, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).
Beef exports totaled 1.26 million metric tons (mt), up 6% percent from 2016. This was the fourth-largest volume on record and the second-largest of the post-BSE era. Beef export value reached $7.27 billion, up 15% year-over-year and 2% above the previous high achieved in 2014 ($7.13 billion).
“This was a remarkable year for beef exports, in our mainstay markets in northern Asia as well as emerging destinations in South America, Southeast Asia and Africa,” said USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom. “The U.S. beef industry gained significant market share in Japan despite considerable obstacles, and posted a record-breaking performance in South Korea and Taiwan. These markets are especially critical for chilled beef exports, which were up about 25% year-over-year. This had a tremendous impact on carcass value.”
Beef export value last year averaged $286.38 per head of fed slaughter, up 9% from 2016 and the second highest on record, trailing only the $300.36 average posted in 2014.