Cash fed cattle trade perked up at the end of the week, according to reports for late-Friday trade. Live prices for the week were generally steady to $3 higher at $118-$120/cwt. in Kansas, $122 in Nebraska and $119-$123 in the western Corn Belt. Dressed trade was steady to sharply higher at $190.
Stronger cash prices helped Cattle futures barrel out of the blocks, building on the previous week’s momentum. Futures closed mixed, though, with uncertainty about the impact of the weekend’s brutal winter weather, and interest in Live Cattle likely capped by the gaping discount between spot Apr and June.
Other than an average of 56¢ higher in the front two contracts, Live Cattle futures closed an average of 11¢ lower.
Except unchanged in May and $1.37 higher in Mar, Feeder Cattle futures closed narrowly mixed, 32¢ lower to 25¢ higher.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 82¢ lower Monday afternoon at $211.79/cwt. Select was 7¢ higher at $199.98.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed sharply higher on Monday, supported by strong quarterly earnings, as well as less tension after the missile strike against Syria by the U.S. and its allies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 212 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 21 points higher. The NASDAQ closed 49 points higher.
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Retail beef prices continue to suggest strong consumer demand, says Derrell Peel, Extension livestock marketing specialist at Oklahoma State University, in his weekly market comments.
“The All-Fresh beef retail price for March was $5.598/lb., up from $5.53/lb. in February and up 0.9% from one year ago,” Peel says. “Choice boxed beef cutout has declined from a February high of $224.46/cwt. to $213.34/cwt. in mid-April but remains 1.6% higher year over year for the latest weekly data.”
Moreover, Peel notes that retail beef prices continue to hold up well relative to pork and poultry prices.
“March retail pork price was $1.502/lb., up from $1.478/lb. in February and down 0.7% from one year ago,” Peel explains. “Composite broiler retail price in March was $1.867/lb., up slightly from the February level of $1.861/lb. and down 0.6% from last year. The ratio of retail beef price to both pork and broiler continues to hold strong despite growing supplies of beef, pork and poultry. Production of beef, pork and broilers are all expected to be record large in 2018 leading to record large total meat supplies of nearly 103 billion lbs., up 3.3% year over year.”
So far this year, beef production is up about 1.5% compared to last year, Peel says, adding that projections call for about a 5% increases by the end of the year.