Cattle futures powered ahead Wednesday, helped along by record and near-record high cash fed cattle prices at a strong premium to the Board. Floundering Corn futures added support.
Before settlement, Live Cattle futures were an average of $1.60 higher. Feeder Cattle futures were an average of $2.24 higher.
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade ranged from limited on light demand to a standstill through Wednesday afternoon, with too few transactions to trend, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
Last week, FOB live prices were $189-$190/cwt. in the Texas Panhandle $188-$191 in Kansas, and mainly $197-$198 in Nebraska and the western Corn Belt.
Dressed delivered prices were $310-$312 in Nebraska and $310 in the western Corn Belt with prices stretching as high as $314.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 54¢ lower Wednesday afternoon at $322.85/cwt. Select was $2.40 lower at $302.86/cwt.
Corn and Soybean futures were lower Wednesday with likely positioning ahead of Friday’s Acreage and Grain Stocks reports.
Heading into the close, through Jly ’25 contracts, Corn futures were 5¢ to 7¢ lower. Kansas City Wheat futures were fractionally higher to 2¢ higher. Soybean futures were 3¢ to 5¢ lower.
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Major U.S. financial indices edged higher Wednesday, helped along by tech stocks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 15 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 8 points higher. The NASDAQ was up 87 points.
Heading into the close, West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil futures on the CME were 4¢ lower to 13¢ higher, through the front six contracts.
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Total pounds of beef in freezers May 31 were 3% less than the previous month and down slightly year over year, according to the latest USDA Cold Storage report
Frozen pork supplies were down 3% from the previous month and down 9% from a year earlier.
Total red meat supplies in freezers were 3% less month to month and 5% less year over year.
Total frozen poultry supplies were up 3% from the previous month but down 5% from a year earlier.