July Placements and Marketings at Record Lows in August Cattle on Feed Report

By Dr. Kenny Burdine

The last several weeks have been a wild ride for the cattle markets. While cattle prices remain historically high, they have fallen sharply this summer. As I write this on August 24^th, fed cattle prices are down by about $30 per cwt, and CME© feeder cattle futures are off by about $35 per cwt, from early July. Fundamentals remain relatively strong, but markets have had to absorb news of additional processing plant shutdowns, the resumption of live cattle imports from Mexico, and last week’s announcement related to increased import levels for the production of ground beef. Somewhat lost in all this was Friday’s Cattle on Feed report, which would have been perceived as bullish on a slower news day.