Cattle prices jump
The fire kept burning in fed cattle markets with prices in Alberta gaining $3-$4 per hundredweight last week after picking up $5 the week before.
“Top fed cattle sales reached $117.50 live or $192 dressed … marking the highest prices since the spring of 2001,” Canfax reported.
Volumes were up significantly as feeders tried to catch the rally.
Alberta prices Jan. 9 were steers $111.75-$116.65 per cwt., flat rail $186.50-$193.45 and heifers $111.25-$118.00, flat rail $192.55.
United States fed cattle prices also saw a solid increase with prices up $3 US to $78 per cwt. Prices prior to Christmas were $72. Prices are now more than $10 higher than they were in January 2002.
Read Also
Vegetable oil stocks are expected to tighten this year
Global vegetable oil stocks are forecast to tighten in the 2025-26 crop year, this should bode well for canola demand.
Cutout beef values also gained with the choice light class up almost $5 from the previous week and $17 from last year (a 16 percent increase).
The tighter supplies of cattle on feed in U.S. and Alberta are finally having an effect on the marketplace. Alberta kills were four percent smaller for the first week of the year compared to 2002, Canfax said.
The Canada-U.S. basis level is now in the historic range of $5-$6 Cdn. Last year during January there was a narrow $3 basis.
Packers are now picking up the cattle they buy much quicker then they were before Christmas, meaning an improvement in bargaining position for feeders, Canfax said.
Feeder prices climb
Feeder sales started the new year with steady to stronger prices on most classes.
Volumes were fairly small but good for a week so early in the year.
Most buyers were local, but with lower corn prices, American buyers may soon start to show increased interest in Canadian feeders.
Slaughter cows traded higher. D1, 2 cows averaged $57 per cwt., with most grain-fed sales at $57-$62 by the end of week.
Canfax expects steady prices over the next few weeks as feedlots fill pens. Also, the strong fed market will likely support the feeder market.
In stock cow trade, bred cows traded from $600-$1,400, with most at $800-$1,250.
Bred heifers traded at $700-$1,400, with most $850-$1,250. Trade was light. One sale was reported with some cow-calf pairs selling at $1,000-$1,200.
Hog prices cycled
U.S. hog prices started the week on a positive note, declined midweek, but came back Jan. 9.
The turnaround came when the pork cutout value rose slightly later in the week due to increased wholesale prices for loins, picnics, ribs and hams, said Manitoba Agriculture.
The Iowa-Minnesota daily direct hog price (plant mean, 51-52 percent, lean carcass converted to live weight) fell from $34.03 US per cwt. on Jan. 6 to $33 midweek, but rose slightly to $33.03 Jan. 9.
On average, the week’s hog price was about two percent above the previous week’s price.
