Judging by estimated weekly cattle slaughter, the beef packing pace continues to improve but remains hindered.
Total cattle slaughter last week of 643,000 head was 7,000 head more than the previous week but 13,000 head less than the same week last year.
Oversold conditions and higher wholesale beef prices helped Cattle futures regain some ground Friday.
Choice Boxed beef cutout value was $1.31 higher Friday afternoon at $290.42/cwt. Select was $4.31 higher at $283.41.
Live Cattle futures closed an average of 89¢ higher, except for unchanged in the back contract.
Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of 71¢ higher (12¢ to $1.37 higher).
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade ranged from mostly inactive on light demand to a standstill through Friday afternoon, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
For the week, live prices were steady in the Texas Panhandle at $137/cwt., $1 lower in Kansas at $136, steady to $1 lower in Nebraska at $137 and steady in the western Corn Belt at $137-$139. Dressed trade was steady at $218.
Keep in mind, USDA will release Jan. 1 cattle inventory numbers Monday afternoon.
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Resurgent tech stocks helped major U.S. financial indices close sharply higher Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 564 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 105 points higher. The NASDAQ was up 417 points.
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South American weather and the tension between Russia and Ukraine continued to bolster grain prices and market volatility last week.
In his weekly comments, Aaron Smith, crop marketing specialist at the University of Tennessee points out Brazil and Argentina account for 58% of global soybean exports and 40% of global corn exports.
As for political tension in eastern Europe, Smith explains, “Russia has increased its share of global wheat exports from less than 10% in the early 2000s to approximately 20% and has been the top global supplier of wheat in recent years. For the 2021-22 marketing year, Ukraine is projected to provide 12% of global exports of wheat and 16% of global exports of corn…Conflict between the two countries could restrict supplies and disrupt logistics in the region, causing importing countries to seek supplies elsewhere.”
Soybeans received another boost Friday from worries over reduced global palm oil exports. Soybean futures closed 11¢ to 21¢ higher through Jan ‘23 and then mostly fractionally higher to 4¢ lower. Soybean futures closed an average of 45.5¢ higher through the front six contracts week to week on Friday. Those contracts were an average of 80.9¢ higher over the last two weeks.
Corn futures closed 10¢ higher in the front three contracts on Friday and then mostly 2¢ higher. They were an average of 18.9¢ higher through the front three contracts week to week.