Cattle prices nosedive
SASKATOON (Staff) – Slaughter cattle prices jumped off the 10-metre tower last week, plummeting by $2 per hundredweight on the hoof and up to $4 per cwt. on the rail.
Canfax said the steep slide in bids by packers caught feedlots by surprise, especially since prices were predicted to remain steady through the rest of August.
Cash markets in the big feedlot states in the U.S. were also $1-$2 U.S. per cwt. lower at $61-$62, despite volumes that had recovered from a mid-month lull.
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In Canada, weights were a factor as the average steer carcass rose by seven pounds in a week to 780.4 lb., while heifer carcasses jumped by nearly 28 lb. to 723.4.
Limited trade on Aug. 17 had steer prices at $76.50 -76.75 and a few heifers at $77.50 per cwt.
But feeder cattle prices shrugged off pressure from the fat market, keeping prices steady.
Demand for short keep feeders is particularly strong, Canfax said, with narrow price spreads between 700 and 900 lb. animals. Volumes on offer were up by two-thirds compared to last week, boosted by yearlings coming off grass, but on par with the same week in 1994.
Hogs keep climbing
Saskatchewan Pork International reports North American hog prices continued setting 1995 records, driven by packers bidding aggressively for supplies, spurred by better wholesale demand.
Meanwhile, the pooled Index 100 hog prices rose by $2.50 per hundred kilograms in Saskatchewan to $168.60; Manitoba’s price rose by $3.52 per ckg to $172.32 while Alberta prices rose by $4.40 per ckg to $169.80.
