Livestock report

By NewsPress Now

RECEIPTS: Auctions Direct Video/Internet Total

This Week: 273,400 34,900 2,900 311,200

Last Week: 249,600 33,500 24,600 307,700

Year Ago: 233,900 20,800 6,300 261,000

Compared to last week, steers and heifers sold uneven; 2.00 lower to 2.00 higher. Demand was moderate to very good for calves with good demand for the short supply of yearling cattle.

Dryness continues to worsen across the country (near 80% of the country is in drought status) as the largest cattle states are heavily affected. Water issues in some of the driest areas of the state have been reported and there are some concerns about the lack of wheat for grazing which is a big sector of the fall market.

Dry weather is pushing calves to town in the most arid areas of the country and there are plenty of buyers on the seats eager to own high quality calves. The market seems to be the most active on those light calves that will make yearlings.

Yearling operators are competing heavily to buy these lightweight cattle while they can, as they had a profitable year and want to get as many bought as early as possible. Calves in the North Plains were described as mostly hide and hair as they came out of very dry range conditions, living off mommas’ milk and top-quality genetics.

Anecdotally, many calves coming off the cows up North were hitting the scale are roughly 20 to 40 lbs lighter than expected. Ample supplies of hay baled in the first half of the year in many states, for the time being at least, means there is plenty of feed although most everyone would prefer grazing stockpiled pasture opposed to feeding this early.

As the CME Live Cattle contracts rose, yearling operators and cattle feeders became very bullish in their approach to the calf market. Thursday’s Monthly Livestock Slaughter report showed 2024 Year-to-Date FI Cattle harvest at nearly 23.5 million head, nearly 800K less than a year ago.

In addition, the YTD steer and heifer carcass weights were 923 and 842 lbs respectively, 24 and 20 lbs more than a year ago for the same period. Given the drop off in slaughter rate and the increase in carcass fed cattle carcass weights, YTD FI Beef Production is only 35 million lbs shy of a year ago, a testament to the beef industry moving pounds to the marketplace by harvesting steers and heifers at a much higher weight than last year.

Friday’s Cattle on Feed Report came in at 100% on feed; 98% Placements and 102% for Marketings. Also on Friday, NASS’s Cold Storage report showed total red meat supplies in freezers were up 3% from the previous month but down 1% from last year. Total pounds of beef in freezers were up 6% from the previous month but down 2% from last year.

Live sales of negotiated cash fed cattle trade in the South Plains sold 2.00 to 3.00 higher at 190.00 to 191.00. In Nebraska, live sales sold 2.00 higher at 190.00, while the dressed sales sold mostly 2.00 higher at 298.00, with a few sales up to 302.00.

Choice boxed beef closed the week 1.59 higher at 322.24 while Select was 0.88 higher at 295.08 for the same period. Weekly Cattle Slaughter under federal inspection estimated at 623K, 15K more than last week and 12K less than a year ago. Auction volume this week included 36% weighing over 600 lbs and 40% heifers.