Cattle Mixed Mostly Lower

October and December fats are in the black at midday with gains limited to 55 cents. The other front months are down 15 to 25 cents so far. The FCE auction for Thursday showed 429 of the 1,202 head listed were sold for $144 and $144.50. The unsold cattle saw bids of $144, but asks were $145-146. USDA confirmed very light trade on Wednesday anywhere from $143 to $147 – the bulk of the Northern market is gravitating towards $145. Feeder cattle are also mixed with 12 to 70 cent losses through the front months, compared to the March contract’s 10 cent gain. The CME Feeder Cattle Index for 10/4 was 9 cents weaker at $175.58. 

Weekly Export Sales data showed 16,351 MT of beef bookings for the week that ended 9/29. South Korea was the top buyer with 6k MT. Beef exports were listed at 18,360 MT, mostly to South Korea and Japan. Total beef shipments for the year remain at record pace with 719,408 MT shipped through 9/29. 

Monthly converted Census data had August beef exports as 323.6m lbs. That would be a record for the month, and sets the full year total as 2.417b lbs. USDA is assuming 2022 beef shipments will reach 3.561b lbs. That implies a 286m lb monthly export for the remaining 4 months. Just Feb ’22, and June ’21 were below that mark in the last 17 months. 

Wholesale Boxed Beef prices from Thursday morning were mixed as Choice was up 58 cents and Select dropped by 47 cents. USDA estimated the week’s FI cattle slaughter at 383,000 head through Wednesday. That is up 3,000 from last week and is 20,000 more than the same week last year. 

Oct 22 Cattle  are at $145.225, up $0.550,

Dec 22 Cattle  are at $148.050, up $0.125,

Feb 23 Cattle  are at $151.625, down $0.125,

Oct 22 Feeder Cattle  are at $175.925, down $0.625

Nov 22 Feeder Cattle  are at $176.650, down $0.675