Cattle prices rise
Average fed cattle prices increased last week due mainly to lighter weight animals in the mix.
Price ranges were wide with large discounts on heavy cattle. Some cattle were sold to American buyers, Canfax said.
Prices Sept. 30 were steers $85.30-$88 per hundredweight, flat $147.75 and heifers $88-$89.75, flat $149.30.
There appear to be adequate supplies of beef in the pipeline.
Calgary wholesale beef prices were steady with handyweights at $146-$158 per cwt. but severe discounts were applied to carcasses over 900 pounds.
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Packers are trying to push up retail beef prices next week given that cash cattle prices appear poised to move higher.
Canfax said the market faces uncertainty, particularly in the countervail duty situation.
It said feedlots with cattle weighing more than 1,400 lb. should sell them Ð the sooner the better. Supplies should tighten up after that.
Average cow prices rose $2 per cwt. but the market was mixed.
Stronger averages were a result of higher sales late in the week and the fact that the bottom end of price range was higher.
More rings are reporting bottom sales closer to $50 than $47 on D1, 2s. Price pressure is expected in the coming weeks as cow volumes grow.
Feeder cattle prices were mostly steady.
Prices at the lower end of the range were quality driven.
For example, yearlings were weaker in a few cases, but fleshier types saw lower prices.
Volumes continue to rise. This week almost 68,000 head were reported sold in Alberta, up 11 percent from the previous week and last year’s volumes.
Canfax said feeder prices are expected to remain strong with some slightly lower values for calves expected if supplies get too large. Farmer buying may be a price-supporting factor in the near future.
In stock cow trade, prices were steady on light trade.
There appears to be plenty of seller interest.
Bred cows ranged from $600-$1,250, bred heifers $800-$1,100 and cow-calf pairs $1,100-$1,640.
Hog prices moving up
Hog prices in Canada rose last week, tracking gains made in the United States where higher pork belly prices boosted the market.
Manitoba hog prices increased to an estimated $137 per 100 kilograms for Index 100 hogs, including premiums.
Average Iowa-southern Minnesota hog prices (plant top, 51-52 percent lean, live equivalent) rose from $39.75 (U.S.) per cwt. on Sept. 27 to $40.75 by week’s end.
Hog marketings increased due to stronger prices and wet weather in the Midwest, which allowed more producers to take time during harvest to ship hogs.
Manitoba Agriculture said analysts are questioning where all the hogs are coming from.
If they are being marketed early, then average market weights will decline and there will be fewer hogs to be sold later in the month, which is good for prices.
It is difficult to reconcile the U.S. Department of Agriculture September hog and pig report that said the breeding herd is down by eight percent but farrowing intentions for the next two quarters are down only four percent.
