Market Reports

Erratic volatility plagued commercial cattle markets during the month of October in direct relation to the roller coaster ride that grain markets have been experiencing since mid-September when full swing harvest began moving through the Corn Belt. Typically, corn and soybean prices are under pressure during harvest but this year’s disappointing yields and low global stocks have caused grain markets to be ultra-sensitive to the slightest crop report, rumor, or innuendo.

August was a solid month for U.S. beef exports, easily outpacing the results of August 2009 and increasing its gains over the cumulative totals from the first eight months of 2009.

Although Mexico is still the No. 1 destination for U.S. beef exports, it is the only major market trailing last year's results, according to the U.S Meat Export Federation (USMEF), a contractor of the beef checkoff.

As expected, September brought bearish pressure on feeder cattle markets with increased supplies of spring-born calves, but this year the arrival of fall was grizzlier than normal with corn prices surging. Early corn harvest yields and silage tonnage have been disappointing and fears that this year’s crop may fall well short of expectations had already surfaced before the USDA began significantly lowering their estimates on the Supply and Demand report issued Sept. 10.

August feeder cattle movement was seasonally light as usual, but marketing calves and yearlings late this summer was especially difficult with extremely high heat and humidity plaguing most of the central portion of the U.S. Dangerously high heat indexes caused tremendous shrink on cattle being moved to market with heat stress sapping flesh and fill conditions and even deathloss in several cases before purchases made their new destinations. Calf demand was only moderate early in August during the hottest portion of the summer, but yearling feeder cattle interest never wavered as feedyard inventories are extremely “green” and buyers continue aggressively for feedlot replacements as the finished cattle market remains brisk.

The following is a summary report of the July cattle supply marketings as reported by USDA Livestock & Grain Market News.

Feeder cattle marketing in July usually starts with a full-week shut-down for the Fourth of July, but this year the industry was not in total agreement on which week to take its break (with Independence Day falling on a Sunday).