Texas Daily Ag Market Summary 1/7/15

Posted 9 years 325 days ago by

· Feeder cattle steady to $2 lower to $7 higher; futures lower.
· Fed cattle cash trade higher; formula trades higher; futures slightly lower; beef prices mixed.
· Cotton lower.
· Grains and soybeans mixed.
· Crude oil sharply lower; natural gas higher.
· Stock markets lower.

Texas feeder cattle auctions quoted prices mostly steady to $7 higher, with one location $2 lower on a few head. Feeder cattle futures were lower due to uncertainty about beef demand. The Texas fed cattle cash trade was higher, up $7 from prior three-week average. Wholesale boxed beef values were mixed, with Choice up $0.97 to $250.33 per cwt and Select down $0.38 to $240.05. Estimated cattle harvest so far this week totaled 218,000 head, down 11K from last week, but only 1,000 from a year ago. Year-to-date harvest is down 0.46%. Fed cattle futures were slightly lower due to speculative selling and aggressive losses in the feeder cattle market.

Cotton cash and futures prices were both about a half a cent lower on Tuesday. The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) announced that global cotton acreage will decline in 2015 in part to the large volume of ending stocks and the low prices. Cotton prices are down about 27% from last year.

Corn and grain sorghum prices were near unchanged to a cent lower as concerns start to grow about low oil prices’ impact on ethanol. Soybeans closed higher as demand stays strong. However, analysts are watching the large supplies available that will start to impact price.

Wheat prices were higher, with talk about the colder weather impacting U.S. production.

Stock markets were lower again, as crude oil fell to $47.93 a barrel. This is the worst start to a year for U.S. stock indexes since 2008.

Disclaimer: The information compiled in the Daily Market Summary is obtained from a variety of sources, including those available on the Internet, that are believed to be reliable and accurate, but are in no way guaranteed. This information is intended to provide only a summary of market trends and a daily snapshot of agricultural markets and economic indicators. It should not be relied upon as a sole source of market information. Commentary is the author’s alone and does not in any way convey official TDA policies.