The live cattle futures market ended the day near the session highs with 72 to 95 cent gains. April got back to within $1 of the life of contract (LoC) high, while December was within 50 cents of its LoC high. The midweek FCE auction had 1,233 head listed with no sales. Bids were capped at $163, while the feedlots were looking for $165-$166. Cash trade remains unestablished for the week. Nearby feeder cattle futures closed $0.97 to $2.05 higher. March was the exception with a 27 cent loss for the day, respecting the index ahead of expiration. CME’s Feeder Cattle Index for $191.27 on 3/28, down by 7 cents.
USDA’s Wholesale Boxed Beef prices were quoted at $280.29 in Choice and $268.90 in Select this afternoon. For Choice that was a 34 cent drop and Select was down by $1.46. The ribs were $450.77 and $425.04 cwt. respectively. USDA estimated the FI cattle slaughter at 379,000 head for the week through Wednesday. That compares to 378k last week and 370k during the same week last year.
Apr 23 Cattle closed at $165.825, up $0.875,
Jun 23 Cattle closed at $159.650, up $0.750,
Aug 23 Cattle closed at $159.450, up $0.725,
Mar 23 Feeder Cattle closed at $191.450, down $0.275
Apr 23 Feeder Cattle closed at $198.200, up $0.975
Aug 23 Feeder Cattle closed at $218.950, up $2.050
On the date of publication, Alan Brugler did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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