Cattle futures dip forward of key USDA report
22 August 2025
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Chicago Mercantile Trade (CME) cattle futures fell on Thursday after rising for 4 consecutive classes, as merchants booked earnings and squared positions forward of the US Division of Agriculture’s (USDA) month-to-month Cattle on Feed report due after the market’s shut on Friday, Reuters reported.
Trade gamers had been anticipating a bullish report, with analysts surveyed by Reuters predicting a discount of cattle positioned in feedlots and marketed in comparison with the identical interval a yr in the past.
CME October dwell cattle futures fell 0.125 cent to 234.725 cents per pound. September feeder cattle fell 0.075 cent to 358.025 cents per pound.
A traditionally low provide of cattle, which has been additional constrained by the closure of the US-Mexico border to feeder cattle imports, has fuelled a rally in cattle futures.
Screwworm, a parasitic fly that eats livestock and wildlife alive, has moved north in Mexico towards the US border and prompted the USDA to chop off Mexican cattle imports.
The import stoppage has propelled cattle futures to new heights and helped hold beef costs excessive.
The selection boxed beef cutout worth was final up $2.01 on Thursday afternoon at $407.86 per hundredweight (cwt), in keeping with USDA information. The choose beef cutout was up 44 cents to $383.60 per hundredweight.
Regardless of near-record excessive beef costs, there have been few indicators of client pushback.
“Customers aren’t batting an eye fixed by way of demand,” Austin Schroeder, analyst at Brugler Advertising, stated.
Lean hog futures ended barely decrease as CME October lean hogs fell 0.025 cents to settle at 89.925 cents per pound.
