Surging futures prices for grains and soybeans—tied to USDA’s much-anticipated reports (see below)—and technical selling helped fuel aggressive selling in Cattle futures on Thursday.
Live Cattle futures closed an average of $2.46 lower ($1.70 to $3.00 lower).
Except for 37¢ lower in expiring Mar, Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of $4.17 lower.
Futures and equity markets will be closed in observance of Good Friday.
Choice boxed beef cutout value was 62¢ lower Thursday afternoon at $221.00/cwt. Select was $1.95 lower at $209.68.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed sharply higher on Thursday, buoyed in part by a rebound in tech stocks and investors squaring positions for the week, month and quarter.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 254 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 35 points higher. The NASDAQ closed 114 points higher.
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Corn growers intend to plant 88.0 million acres in 2018, down 2%, or 2.14 million acres from last year. That’s according to the Prospective Plantings report from USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). If realized this will be the lowest planted acreage since 2015. That’s on the low side of most estimates ahead of the report.
Soybean acres are also estimated lower at 89.0 million acres, which is 1% less than last year. If realized, the planted area of soybeans in Indiana, Kentucky, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin will be the largest on record.
Acreage for all wheat planted this year is estimated at 47.3 million acres, up 3% percent from 2017, but it would be the second lowest all wheat planted area on record since records began in 1919.
Harvested acres of all hay are estimated to be about even with last year at 53.7 million acres.
NASS’s acreage estimates are based on surveys conducted during the first two weeks of March from a sample of approximately 82,900 farm operators across the United States.
Corn Stocks Up 3%
USDA also released the quarterly Grain Stocks report on Thursday.
Corn stocks totaled 8.89 billion bu. Mar. 1, up 3% from the same time last year. On-farm corn stocks were up 2% from a year ago; off-farm stocks were up 5%.
Soybeans stored totaled 2.11 billion bu., up 21% from the previous year. On-farm soybean stocks were up 28% from a year ago, while off-farm stocks were up 17%.
All wheat stored totaled 1.49 billion bu., down 10% from a year ago. On-farm all wheat stocks were 26% less than last year; off-farm stocks were 6% less.