CME update: cattle futures rise as traders expect firmer cash prices

Live cattle futures closed higher on Tuesday 8 September as traders expected firmer cash values as supplies of market-ready cattle fall.
calendar icon 9 September 2020
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Reuters reports that the tightening supplies of market-ready cattle follows a drop this past spring in the number of cattle placed in feedlots.

"Packer margins are huge; they are still over $350 a head. So, I think the feedlots could pay up more," said Don Roose, president of Iowa-based US Commodities.

Others cautioned, however, that demand for market-ready cattle from meat packing plants may be limited by heavy cattle weights that have bolstered beef production and slower line speeds due to measures aimed at reducing the spread of the coronavirus among workers.

Still, cattle markets tend to firm in the fall, Roose noted.

"Seasonally, we are coming into that time frame where the technicals are starting to look more positive," Roose said.

CME October live cattle futures settled up 1.325 cents on Tuesday at 105.775 cents per pound. October feeder cattle futures ended up 1.350 cents at 139.850 cents per pound.

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Source: Reuters

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