Fed trade edges up
Feedlot operators appeared slightly more interested in selling cattle early last week, Canfax said.
Alberta trade June 3 was $85 per hundredweight live or around $140 per cwt. rail. June 4 live prices declined to close in the low- to mid-$70s range.
By June 5 packers had met their immediate requirements and producers balked at the lower prices.
Volume remains thin, Canfax said.
Feedlots were anxious about the market and border situation. Operators with market-ready cattle needed help with their liquidity issues.
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Packers are operating hand to mouth in buying cattle and slaughtering to try to clear and manage some of the slower moving cuts.
No forward beef sales were being made.
The United States has seen record beef prices over the past weeks.
Last week saw some pressure on the cut-out values, but the week ended with choice 600-750 lb. cut-outs at $149.08 US per cwt., up 41 cents from the previous week and $33.68 higher than the same week last year.
Feeder volumes low
Feeder trade was too light to establish trends. Type and quality of cattle sold was mixed.
Grass-type cattle seemed to sell fairly strong while heavier feeder cattle were under some pressure, Canfax said.
Replacement heifer sales were fairly steady in light trade. Most of the trade occurred in central Alberta.
Volume was about 2,600 head, 44 percent fewer than the previous week and 92 percent smaller than the same week last year. Expect light trade to continue, Canfax said.
Grass cattle prices may hold fairly steady while heavier cattle will likely be discounted.
Few slaughter cows were sold in the last few weeks. Last week the range was mostly $35-$45 Cdn per cwt. with the high on D1, 2 cows reaching to $51.50. Slaughter cow prices may be pressured as a larger percentage of each fed beef carcass ends up as ground meat.
A few bred cows sold at $775-$1,050.
Most cow-calf pairs sold at $1,150-1,500, with the bottom of the trade as low as $650 and the top at $1,775.
U.S. prices strengthen
Feeder cattle prices in the U.S. have been strong for the past month, even though prices are normally under pressure this time of year.
The strong fed cattle market has helped to support feeder prices, as has strong beef demand, feedlot profitability and lower corn prices.
Two weeks ago the 750 lb. feeder steer price was $82.38 US per cwt., almost $6.75 higher than the same week last year.
Feeder prices should remain fairly strong heading into the summer because fed cattle have been marketed earlier than scheduled due to profitable margins. This should create empty feedlot pens that need to be filled throughout the summer.
Pork prices rise
Partly in response to the soaring U.S. beef market, wholesale prices for all pork cuts increased by $4 per cwt. or six percent from the week before.
The pork cut-out value was at its highest level since September 2001.
U.S. packers’ daily kill declined for the sixth straight week. Hog prices rose, with the Iowa-Minnesota daily direct hog price (plant mean, 51-52 percent, lean carcass converted to live weight) climbing from $46.71 per cwt. June 3 to $48.63 June 5.
Prices were up by five to six percent from the week before.
Chicago hog futures also rose, supported by the strong cash market.
Canadian prices did not climb, because of the rising value of the Canadian dollar and wash over from the bovine spongiform encephalopathy problem.
