Feeder cattle markets sharply higher this week | Weekly Livestock Market Update
Brownfield's Meghan Grebner talks with agriculture economist Scott Brown about this week's livestock markets: Farm Income, Monthly Trade Data, Jobs Report, and Consumer Sentiment.
This week in the markets:
Live fed cattle prices are $0.40 higher on the week, and feeder cattle markets were $5 to $10 higher on the week. February live cattle were down $2.55 on the week, and January feeder cattle were down $3.05 on the week. Choice box beef was $0.40 lower this week. Cash hogs were $1.25 lower this week. February lean hog futures were up $1.10 on the week. Pork cutout values were $0.60 lower this week on primarily weaker bellies.
Weekly Slaughter:
At the end of the week, cattle slaughter was 614,000 head, up 78,000 on the week but down 24,000 for the year. Hog slaughter was 2.602 million head, up 319,000 from the previous week but down 66,000 on the year. Year-to-date cattle slaughter is down 3.6% relative to last year, and hog slaughter is up 0.8%.
Farm Income:
USDA currently projects 2024 net farm income at $140.7 billion, down $6 billion from 2023 or 4.1%. Livestock cash receipts are projected to grow by $21 billion. Livestock receipts help offset the projected lower crop receipts.
Monthly Trade Data:
October 2024: U.S. beef exports were 241.1 million pounds, virtually unchanged from last year. U.S. beef imports were 414 million pounds in October 2024, up 35.2% from October 2023. October 2024 pork exports totaled nearly 583 million pounds, up 1.7% relative to last year.
Jobs Report:
The November jobs report showed that the U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs, slightly above the pre-report estimates. The unemployment rate rose to 4.2% in November. The yearly increase in hourly wages continued to grow at 4%.
Consumer Sentiment:
The December consumer sentiment index rose by 3.1% relative to last month. This is the fifth consecutive month of improved consumer sentiment this year. The December consumer sentiment index is 6.2% greater than one year ago. The current economic conditions portion of the index jumped 21.6% relative to last month.
Next week's reports:
» WASDE
» Retail Prices
Connect with Brownfield Ag News:
» Get the latest ag news: https://www.brownfieldagnews.com/
» Subscribe to Brownfield on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BrownfieldAgNews
» Follow Brownfield on X (Twitter): https://x.com/brownfield
» Follow Brownfield on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrownfieldAgNews
About Brownfield Ag News:
Brownfield Ag News is your trusted source for reliable agriculture news, market trends, weather updates, and expert interviews. Get comprehensive coverage and stay ahead in the ever-evolving agriculture industry.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
