Cattle futures closed mixed Wednesday in light holiday trade.
Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of 57¢ higher (7¢ to 92¢ higher).
Live Cattle futures closed an average of 34¢ lower (12¢ to $1.12 lower), except for 15¢ higher in waning spot Dec.
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade was at a standstill in all regions through Wednesday afternoon, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
Last week, FOB live prices were $171/cwt. in the Texas Panhandle, $170-$171 in Kansas, $171-$172 in Nebraska and $170 in the western Corn Belt. Dressed delivered prices were $270.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was $1.83 lower Wednesday at 291.48/cwt. Select was 87¢ lower at $260.32/cwt.
Grain futures closed lower Wednesday on likely profit taking.
Corn futures closed mostly 2¢ to 3¢ lower.
KC HRW Wheat futures closed mostly 11¢ lower
Soybean futures closed unchanged to 3¢ higher through Nov ’24 and then 1¢ to to 2¢ lower.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed higher Wednesday with continued optimism tied to the lower inflation and interest rate outlook.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 111 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 6 points higher. The NASDAQ was up 24 points.
West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil futures (CME) closed 99¢ to $1.46 lower through the front six contracts.
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Although Creighton University’s Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI) edged higher month to month in December to 41.7, it remained below growth neutral for the fourth consecutive month. The index ranges between 0 and 100, with a reading of 50.0 representing growth neutral.
“Higher interest rates and a credit squeeze are having a significant and negative impact on Rural Mainstreet businesses,” according to Ernie Goss, Jack A. MacAllister Chair in Regional Economics at Creighton University’s Heider College of Business. “Approximately 13.3% of bank CEOs indicated that their local economy was already in a recession while another 43.3% expect a recession in early 2024.”
When asked to name the greatest 2024 economic threat for community banks, approximately four of 10 identified a downturn in farm income as the chief hazard.
Even though the RMI confidence index climbed to 43.3 from November’s record low 21.2, higher interest rates, deposit outflows and a slowing farm economy over the past several months continued to constrain business confidence.
The Rural Mainstreet Index is a unique index covering 10 regional states dependent on agriculture and/or energy. It focuses on approximately 200 rural communities with an average population of 1,300.