Cattle futures rise as climate limits slaughter
20 March 2025
2 minute learn
Chicago Mercantile Alternate (CME) cattle futures rallied Wednesday as harsh climate circumstances in Nebraska and Kansas restricted slaughter operations, Reuters reported, citing analysts.
CME June stay cattle ended up 1.850 cents at 202.850 cents per pound, hitting lifetime highs alongside most different contracts.
CME April feeder cattle settled up 2.175 cents at 286.725 cents per pound, reaching lifetime of contract highs with all different contracts.
Excessive winds and snow in Nebraska and Kansas result in street closures and different logistical points close to main packing crops, delaying slaughter operations, in response to Cassie Fish, analyst and creator of the Beef e-newsletter.
The USDA reported a every day cattle slaughter of 96,000, down from 123,000 on Tuesday.
“That large, large storm had a big effect,” mentioned Fish.
These delays additionally drove up boxed beef costs, mentioned Fish, with alternative cuts up $6.29 to $329.61 per hundredweight (cwt).
Choose cuts fell $0.55 to $308.68 per cwt.
Feeder cattle noticed its fourth day of positive factors, having risen Tuesday on expectations that the US Division of Agriculture’s upcoming month-to-month cattle on feed report would present decreased placements in comparison with this time final yr, in response to analysts.
The report, due Friday, is predicted to indicate February cattle placements down 14% from final yr, in response to a mean of estimates in a Reuters ballot of analysts.
Lean hogs fell for a second day in a row as buyers had ongoing considerations about the potential of retaliation in opposition to US agricultural exports due to new US tariffs set to enter impact in April.
Mexico, for instance, is a number one importer of US pork.
CME’s April lean hog contract settled down 2.025 cents at 85.575 cents per pound.
In wholesale pork, carcasses fell $0.45 to $95.19 per cwt and the lean hog index worth for the 2 days ending on March 17 was at $89.32.
