Fed cattle prices rose last week with heifers increasing more than steers.
Canfax said heifers were 75 cents to $1 per hundredweight higher, based on quality and lighter carcass weights.
Steers were up 25 cents per cwt. on average.
Offerings were lighter at 16,500 head, down 16 percent from the previous week’s heavier run.
Weights continue to be a key factor in prices, with steers weighing more than 1,400 pounds at the lower end of the price bids.
The demand included American packers’ bids.
Prices Sept. 2 had steers bringing $85.80-$89.95 per cwt., flat rail $146.30 and heifers $87.75-$90.25, flat rail $149.80.
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.
Packers said beef sales are slowing. A large kill the previous week of almost 74,000 head put plenty of beef in the system. Now the focus is on the ample supply.
Average steer carcass weights have crept up to 816 lb.
The Montreal wholesale beef price was steady at $153 last week. Calgary wholesales were quoted as steady to $1 per cwt. higher in a range of $146-$158 on handyweight steers.
Canfax said a firm to stronger price trend is expected on fed cattle through September. This summer saw strong beef movement. Sometimes sales slow after Labor Day, but pick up later in September.
The tighter fed cattle supply in Western Canada will continue to support the market, but packers will still discount off-type and heavier cattle, Canfax said.
Cow prices started last week strong, but were $1-$2 per cwt. lower by the close due to a significant drop in boneless beef prices. Supply will increase this fall. The outlook for this week is $1 lower.
Feeder cattle traded $1-$2 higher on yearlings while calves came in $2-$3 higher on the weekly averages.
Yearlings were a hot commodity, as feedlots were looking to fill pens, said Canfax. Buyers reluctant to spend top dollar are going away empty-handed.
Yearling prices were $13-$16 per cwt. higher than last year while calf prices were $20-$35 higher.
The strong demand is expected to keep prices up through September, said Canfax.
Bred cow and heifer price quotes are increasing slightly in volume. Bred cows ranged from $600-$1,200, with a few bred heifers ranging from $900-$1,100. Cow-calf pair prices were from $800-$1,640.
U.S. weakens hog price
Lower United States wholesale pork prices early last week led to a decline in cash hog prices, said Manitoba Agriculture.
However, packer break-even prices of about $45 (U.S.) per cwt. (live) allowed packers to raise their bids for hogs at the end of the week when more hogs were needed for a Saturday kill.
Iowa-Southern Minnesota hog prices (plant top, 51-52 percent lean, live equivalent) went from $41.25 (U.S.) per cwt. on Aug. 30 to $39.50 per cwt. at the end of the week. In Manitoba, the Index 100 hog price fell to an estimated $137 per 100 kilograms for the week from $146 the previous week in response to the weaker U.S. market.
