Cattle futures basically tread water on Tuesday.
Feeder Cattle futures closed mixed, from an average of 33¢ lower in the front three contracts to an average of 19¢ higher.
Live Cattle futures closed an average of 19¢ higher, except for an average of 11¢ lower in the front two contracts.
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade ranged from limited on very light demand to a standstill through Tuesday afternoon with too few transactions to trend, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
Last week, FOB live prices were $179/cwt. in the Texas Panhandle, $178-$179 in Kansas, $182 in Nebraska and $183-$185 in the western Corn Belt.
Dressed delivered prices were $290-$292 in Nebraska and $290 in the western Corn Belt.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 99¢ higher Tuesday afternoon at $315.48/cwt. Select was 75¢ lower at $289.54/cwt.
Corn futures closed 4¢ to 6¢ higher through new-crop contracts and then mostly 1¢ to 2¢ higher, supported by expected reduction in crop ratings.
KC HRW Wheat closed mostly fractionally lower to 2¢ lower.
Soybean futures closed fractionally lower to 7¢ lower through Jly ‘24 and then mostly 5¢ higher.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed lower Tuesday, pressured in part by rising oil prices fueled by Russia and Saudi Arabia extending voluntary production cuts.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 195 points lower. The S&P 500 closed 18 points lower. The NASDAQ was down 10 points.
West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil futures (CME) closed $1.14 to $1.31 higher through the front six contracts.
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Agricultural producer sentiment dropped sharply in August, as measured by the monthly Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer. The index declined 8 points month to month in August to 115, as the Current Conditions Index fell 13 points to 108. The Future Expectations Index was down 5 points to 119.
“Rising interest rates and concerns about high input prices continue to put downward pressure on producer sentiment,” says James Mintert, the barometer’s principal investigator and director of Purdue University’s Center for Commercial Agriculture. “This month over half (60%) of the producers we surveyed said they expect interest rates to rise in the upcoming year.”
When asked about their top concerns for their farming operations in the next 12 months, producers continue to point to higher input prices (34% of respondents) and rising interest rates (24% of respondents). Even though crop prices weakened significantly this summer, only 20% of respondents chose declining commodity prices as one of their top concerns.
This month’s Ag Economy Barometer survey was conducted from August 14-18, 2023.