When last week’s tally was complete, negotiated cash fed cattle trade was mostly $1-$2 higher at $112 to $114/cwt. Dressed trade was mostly steady to $4 higher at mostly $178.
Cattle futures were a touch lower Monday, presumably on profit taking and retrenching in light of recent strength, stronger cash prices and firmer wholesale beef values.
Except for unchanged in the back two contracts, Live Cattle futures closed an average of 28¢ lower.
Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of 83¢ lower (65¢ to $1.17 lower).
At $149.74, the CME Feeder Cattle Index closed at the highest level since January.
Boxed beef cutout values were higher on moderate to fairly good demand and moderate offerings, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 93¢ higher Monday afternoon at $205.68/cwt. Select was $1.24 higher at $198.33.
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Major U.S. financial indices continued higher Monday, buoyed by more positive quarterly earnings reports from the likes of Berkshire Hathaway and Tyson Foods.
The Dow Jones Industrial average closed 39 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 10 points higher. The NASDAQ was up 47 points.
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“Agricultural markets are caught in a whirlwind of trade disruptions. Direct market shocks will lead to ripple effects and are likely to affect most agricultural markets worldwide in the coming months,” says Derrell Peel, Extension livestock marketing specialist at Oklahoma State University, in his weekly market comments. “In some cases, global market shares may be affected in the short run and possibly long term as well.”
In order to anticipate how markets may be impacted, Peel suggests considering global supply and demand profiles. Among those he highlights, based on current USDA estimates:
Beef—the U.S. produces 20% of the global beef supply. Brazil is second largest at 15.7%, followed by the European Union at 12.5% and China at 11.6%.
Brazil accounts for 19.3% of global beef exports, followed by India (18.1%), Australia (15.4%) and the U.S. (13.1 percent).
The U.S. is the world’s largest beef importer (16.6%), followed by China (14.4%), Japan (10.0%), Hong Kong (7.0%) and South Korea (6.7%).
Pork—China is the largest pork producer, accounting for 48.2% of the global supply. The European Union is next at 21.2%, followed by the U.S. at 10.7%.
The EU accounts for 34.8% of global pork exports, followed by the U.S. (32.1%) and Canada (16.2%).
China is the largest pork importer (19.2%), followed by Japan (18.9%) and Mexico (15.1%).
Corn—The U.S. produces 35.9% of the world’s corn. China accounts for 20.9%, followed by Brazil (8.1%) and the EU (6.0%).
The U.S. exports 40.5% of total global corn exports, ahead of Brazil (17.3%), Argentina (15.9%) and the Ukraine (13.0%).
The European Union (12.3%) and Mexico (11.1%) are the two largest corn importers.
Soybeans—The U.S. and Brazil each produce 35.5% of the global soybean supply, followed by Argentina at 11.0%. China accounts for 62.9% of global soybean imports, followed by the European Union (9.1%) and Mexico (3.0%).