Cattle Fall on Thursday with Weaker Cash, as Tyson Announces More Closures

Live cattle futures closed the Thursday session with contracts down $1.52 to $4.35 across the board. There were no deliveries issued against August futures on Wednesday. Cash trade has been picked up with some $228-230 sales in the North. The Thursday Fed Cattle Exchange auction showed no sales on the 1,308 head offered, with a bids of $228. Feeder cattle futures saw $1.40 to $3.52 losses across most contracts. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was back up $3.44 on August 12 to $351.93.  

Late on Thursday, Tyson announced it will shut its Joslin, IL plant (3,000 hd/day) and sell it’s Pasco, WA plant (2,000 hd/day). They also announced the Amarillo, TX plant will ramp up production after cutting back kill last fall. 

Export Sales data from USDA showed beef sales for 2026 at 14,426 MT for the week ending on 8/6. That was a 3-week low. South Korea was the buyer of 5,300 MT, with 3,000 MT sold to Japan. Shipments were tallied at 11,420 MT, which was a 4-week low. The lead destination was Sough Korea at 3,300 MT, with 2,700 MT headed to Japan. 

Wholesale Boxed Beef prices were mixed in the Thursday afternoon report. Choice boxes were up $3.62 at $375.90, with Select down 57 to $349.24. The Chc/Sel spread widened to $26.66. USDA’s Federally inspected cattle slaughter for Thursday was estimated at 106,000 head, with the weekly total at 416,000 head. That is up 3,000 head from the previous week but 34,200 head below the same week last year.

Aug 26 Live Cattle  closed at $226.225, down $4.350,

Oct 26 Live Cattle  closed at $220.050, down $3.750,

Dec 26 Live Cattle  closed at $219.450, down $3.350,

Aug 26 Feeder Cattle  closed at $342.825, down $3.525,

Sep 26 Feeder Cattle  closed at $337.200, down $2.150,

Oct 26 Feeder Cattle  closed at $328.800, down $1.600,