October Cattle On Feed Report Shows Cash Price Rut Continues

Bearish negotiated cash cattle prices are continuing their weeks-long trend, even as numbers showed a modest decline. The reason? Packers see the steady pricing as a sign that supplies are generous compared to slaughter capacity. USDA’s October Cattle on Feed Report saw the first decline since June of last year, albeit only by 1%. Still, the 11.6 million reported is the second-highest inventory since record keeping began in 1996. Regardless of location, packer purchases last week saw Southern cash cattle trading at $124 and Northern cattle at $125, with a few reports of $127. Meanwhile, placements during September totaled 2.16 million head, 3% lower than last year. Read more on cash cattle prices here.