Live Cattle futures are rebounding on Thursday, with contracts up 7 cents to $1.85 at midday. Cash trade saw some light action across the country at $239-240 on Wednesday. However, the Thursday morning Fed Cattle Exchange online auction showed no sales on the 1,646 head offered, with bids at $238.
Feeder Cattle futures are slipping lower so far on Thursday, with contracts down another 77 cents to $2.50 in the red. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was back down 99 cents at $372.00 on October 21.
In trade news, the White House raised the tariff rate quota on Argentina beef imports to 80,000 MT from the previously expected 20,000 MT level. Additionally, on Wednesday, the USDA released plans to help expand the U.S. herd, partly by opening up more federal lands for grazing.
A Reuters survey of analysts anticipates that September placements will be down 8.8% from last year. The monthly cattle-on-feed report, which would normally be released on Friday, will likely be delayed due to the government shutdown. Marketings are expected to be down 4.1%, with October 1 on-feed numbers projected to be 2% below last year.
USDA Wholesale Boxed Beef prices were higher in the Thursday morning report, narrowing the Choice/Select spread to $18.37. Choice boxes were down $1.83 to $372.48, while Select was 50 cents higher at $354.11.
USDA federally inspected cattle slaughter for Wednesday was estimated at 118,000 head, bringing the weekly total to 327,000 head. This is 19,000 head below last week and 41,923 head shy of the same week last year.
Current live cattle futures prices are as follows:
– October 2025 Live Cattle: $240.50, up $1.45
– December 2025 Live Cattle: $241.65, up $1.83
– February 2026 Live Cattle: $241.15, up $0.78
Feeder cattle futures prices are:
– October 2025 Feeder Cattle: $364.30, down $0.78
– November 2025 Feeder Cattle: $362.88, down $1.35
– January 2026 Feeder Cattle: $358.70, down $2.33
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On the date of publication, Austin Schroeder did not hold any positions, directly or indirectly, in the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data provided are solely for informational purposes. For more details, please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Nasdaq, Inc.
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/cattle-seeing-mixed-action-feeders-failing-bounce
