Feeder prices stronger
SASKATOON (Staff) – The direction of feeder cattle and slaughter cattle prices diverged last week.
Fed cattle opened the week under pressure. Feedlots resisted the lower prices by passing on packers’ bids.
By Dec. 7, trade was down by $1 per hundredweight with steers at $81.65-$83 while heifers were between $80-$82. Overall beef trade is slow.
Meanwhile, the 1995 fall run of feeder cattle appears to be over. With fewer animals available and colder weather, Canfax reported prices started to firm by $2-$3 per cwt. late in the week. Steadier barley prices also helped calf prices.
Steers weighing 600-700 pounds in southern Alberta averaged $80.04 per cwt; central Alberta $81.63; northern Alberta $79.75; Saskatchewan $84.63 and $78.70 in B.C.
Bred cow and heifer prices were mostly steady, Canfax reported, with quality determining price.
