Cattle futures eased higher Tuesday, helped along by more bullish outside markets.
Toward the close, Live Cattle futures were an average of 28¢ higher, except for 25¢ lower in spot Dec. Feeder Cattle futures were an average of 40¢ higher, except for 12¢ lower in spot Nov and no trade in the back contract.
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade ranged from mostly inactive on light demand in the western Corn Belt to a standstill in other major cattle feeding regions through Tuesday afternoon, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
Last week, FOB live prices were $190/cwt. in all regions with dressed delivered prices at $296-$298 in Nebraska and $298 in the western Corn Belt.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 30¢ higher Tuesday afternoon at $317.21/cwt. Select was $1.92 lower at $285.24.
Grain and Soybean futures were stronger Tuesday with follow-through support from positive export sales.
Toward the close and through Sep ’25 contracts, Corn futures were fractionally higher to 2¢ higher. Kansas City Wheat futures were 5¢ to 6¢ higher. Soybean futures 2¢ to 7¢ higher.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed higher Tuesday with apparent investor optimism regarding the presidential election.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 427 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 70 points higher. The NASDAQ was up 259 points.
Through mid-afternoon, West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil futures on the CME were 37¢ to 49¢ higher through the front six contracts.
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U.S. agricultural producer sentiment rose significantly and unexpectedly month to month in October based on the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer. The overall index rose 27 points to 115, primarily driven by producers’ increased confidence in the future, with the Future Expectations Index jumping 30 points to 124. The Current Conditions Index also improved, reaching 95, but still reflected producers’ concerns that economic conditions this year are worse than last year and weaker than the barometer’s base period of 2015-16 during the early days of a multiyear downturn in the U.S. farm economy.
In October, only 53% of producers anticipated challenging times for the U.S. agricultural economy in the year ahead, a decrease from 73% in September. Similarly, concerns about the next five years eased, with just 33% of producers expecting tough times ahead, down from 48% the previous month. Additionally, fewer producers expect worsening financial conditions on their farms over the next 12 months, dropping to 23% in October from 38% in September.
“While producer sentiment improved in October, many respondents indicated they are still feeling financial strain due to the deterioration of their financial situation throughout 2024,” says James Mintert, the barometer’s principal investigator and director of Purdue University’s Center for Commercial Agriculture. “Over half of the producers we surveyed reported that their farm’s financial condition was worse than a year ago, which underscores the ongoing challenges producers face despite their more optimistic outlook for the year ahead.”
This month’s survey was conducted from Oct. 14 to Oct. 18.