Cattle futures took a breather on Wednesday with likely profit taking from the previous day’s rally.
Toward the close, Live Cattle futures were an average of 41¢ lower, except for an average of 22¢ higher in three contracts. Feeder Cattle futures were an average of $1.22 lower.
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade was inactive on light demand in the North through Wednesday afternoon, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
FOB live prices last week were $220-$222/cwt. in Nebraska and mostly $219-220 in the western Corn Belt. Dressed delivered prices were mostly $345 in Nebraska and $345-$350 in the western Corn Belt. The Texas Cattle Feeders Association reported its members trading fed cattle at $226.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was $3.31 lower Wednesday afternoon at $375.62/cwt. Select was $2.13 lower at $354.21.
Grain and Soybean futures pulled back Wednesday with some likely profit taking and positioning ahead of Friday’s monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates.
Through late afternoon, and through the front four contracts, Soybean futures were 5¢ to 7¢ lower. Kansas City HRW Wheat futures were 16¢ to 17¢ lower. Corn futures were 4¢ to 6¢ lower.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed lower Wednesday as Treasury yield rates rose again, boosting inflation worries.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 341 points lower. The S&P 500 closed 17 points lower. The NASDAQ was down 61 points.
Through mid-afternoon, West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures (CME) were 53¢ lower to 45¢ higher through the front six contracts.
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U.S. beef exports strengthened in August, fueled by a near-record performance in Taiwan and a rebound in South Korea.
Export volume of 86,362 metric tons (mt) for the month was 4% more than the previous year, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). Export value in August was 13% higher at $785.9 million.
“USMEF expected to see stronger beef exports to Korea in the second half of the year, as reflected in the August data,” says USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom. “And I cannot say enough about the outstanding demand in Taiwan, which has truly been a star performer for U.S. beef in 2026. As for China, the August increase is just a fraction of what would be possible in that market, especially since Australian beef has faced a 55% safeguard tariff since June 20. But China still needs to relist suspended facilities and the U.S. industry needs further clarity on technical requirements before beef exports to China will significantly rebound.”
In addition to year-over-year growth in Taiwan and Korea, August exports also trended higher to the Middle East, the ASEAN region, Colombia and Cote d’Ivoire, known more commonly as the Ivory Coast.
For January through August, beef exports were down 7% year-over-year in volume at 721,150 mt but were just 1% lower in value at $6.32 billion. This decline is largely attributable to lower exports to China compared to the early months of 2025, before market access obstacles began to heavily impact U.S. exports. When excluding China from the January-August results, beef exports were 1% below last year in volume but 6% higher in value.
Beef export value equated to $436.11 per head of fed slaughter in August, up 17% from a year ago. The January-August average was $430.97 per head, up 8%.
For broader perspective, U.S. pork exports declined in August, driven by lower shipments to Mexico. Pork export volume was 6% less than the previous August at 222,243 mt while value fell 12% to $606.3 million.