Sort & Cull

Fall drought has helped force heifers into feedlots instead of the U.S. breeding herd.

The market's fundamentals are incredible with fed cash cattle prices having traded higher during the past seven weeks and last week's slaughter was the highest number since the first week of February.

While it's likely the cattle market will trade higher again in the weeks ahead, traders are expected to be cautious as they brace for Friday's Cattle on Feed report.

Feedlot managers can afford to play 'hard ball' and roll some of their showlists over if prices aren't what they desire, but what concerns DTN Livestock Analyst ShayLe Stewart the most about the current market dynamics is boxed beef demand.

Over the last four weeks, feedlot managers have been able to steadily advance the cash market. But with futures up against resistance thresholds, will feedlot managers be able to do it again this week?

Last week's market outperformed what many expected it would do, but if boxed beef prices continue to soften this week, the market could struggle to maintain its rally.

Boxed beef prices, the board's support and throughput will obviously heavily dictate how this week's cash cattle market pans out; but, thankfully, after last week's rallying gust, feedlot managers seem to have a spot at the table where negotiations can at least happen, as...

As the cattle complex has yet to regain its footing in the market, here are some of the bearish and bullish factors to monitor in the week ahead.

The cattle complex has been challenged since the beginning of July, which has cow-calf producers worried about this fall's market.

Wyoming cattle have died from anthrax, which has led to a quarantine of cattle in a localized area to try to prevent spread of the disease.

Nebraska's governor has signed an executive order banning state agencies from buying lab-grown protein products and create a new rule to add more labels for those products. Three other states have either banned the sale of lab-grown meats or added similar restrictions.

There are still a plethora of external pressures looming overhead of the cattle complex, but maybe, just maybe, the market showed some effort and desire to press onward as Monday's market closed with higher prices.

The futures market may be stressed and skeptical, but we'll be able to see what the true sentiment is in the countryside with both Superior Livestock Auction and Northern Livestock Video Auction hosting big video sales this week.

Through the eyes of day trader, it may seem boring to watch the cattle complex chop sideways; but for cattlemen, days of steady, stable trade are far better than gut-wrenching rollercoaster rides that can drain dollars within minutes.

I know these days are painful. I know these days are daunting and costly and stressful. But I urge you, to the best of your ability, resist emotional kneejerk reactions and try to sort out your business in a level-headed manner. I would begin by assessing all your options and...

If the market currently has 11,304,000 head of cattle on feed, which is 1% more than what the market had on feed a year ago, then why are packers having to pay more money for cash cattle right now?

Packer have drastically cut chain speeds to try to keep the cash cattle market from rallying and to hopefully add some support to boxed beef prices, but with today's cattle possessing heavier carcass weights than a year ago, feedlots could see some supply pressures later...

Boxed beef prices and fed cash cattle prices endured some pressure last week, but the feeder cattle market continues to trade with immense demand.

Both Superior Livestock Auction and Western Video Market are hosting sales early this week and even though the board closed lower Monday afternoon, feeder cattle demand was hot.

The market will be closed on Thursday for the Fourth of July holiday, but normal trade will resume on Friday and it's likely that the weekly cash cattle trade could wait to develop until that point as feedlot managers again aim for higher prices.