Slaughter cattle prices rebound
SASKATOON (Staff) – It seems the bottom of the slaughter cattle market is made of rubber.
Just a week after American live futures prices were trading at less money than was being paid for hog futures (the first time in 10 years), prices in Chicago rebounded by $5 per hundredweight for the week. Nearby futures are now above $60 per cwt.
In Alberta, Canfax reported local markets opened the week $2 higher, added another $1 by midweek and then another $3 when the magnitude of the shift in United States futures prices was digested.
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Canfax said the higher futures prices gave feedlots the security to hold out for higher cash prices, at the same time that packers were feeling a pinch in inventory.
That pinch, in turn, was driven by retail buyers who have stepped up their buying from recent hand-to-mouth patterns.
Canfax reported slaughter steers were bid from $71-$72.85 per cwt, while heifers were bid from $70-$72.25.
Slaughter cows sold early in the week went for less money than those sold later, but Canfax said on average prices were steady with volume a bit lower. D1 and D2 cows traded from $35-$45 per cwt., with top sales to $46.75. Sales on the rail were bid from $76-$80.
Feeder cattle average out
Feeder cattle prices exhibited the same pattern as the slaughter cows throughout the week, but the volume of sales done at lower prices early in the week meant overall averages were down.
Canfax said feeder prices have upside potential with the higher live cattle prices and lower feed prices.
