Texas Daily Ag Market Summary 1/8/15

Posted 9 years 324 days ago by

· Feeder cattle steady to $10 higher; futures higher.
· Fed cattle cash trade slightly higher; formula trades lower; futures lower; beef prices sharply higher.
· Cotton mixed.
· Grains and soybeans mixed.
· Crude oil higher; natural gas lower.
· Stock markets higher.

Texas feeder cattle auctions quoted prices steady to $10 higher, with one sale location reporting an increase as high as $30 in comparison to pre-holiday prices. Feeder cattle futures were higher for nearby contacts in response to strong auction prices. The Texas fed cattle cash trade was slightly higher yesterday, and wholesale boxed beef values were sharply higher. Estimated cattle harvest week to date totaled 322,000 head, up 2K from the previous week, but down 13K from a year ago. Year-to-date harvest is down 3.9%. Fed cattle futures were slightly lower, despite the strong cash market support for live cattle. The uncertainty of long term demand for beef is causing triple digit losses in deferred contracts for both feeder and live cattle futures.

Cotton cash prices were unchanged while futures gained about half of its previous loss to close at 60.43 cents per pound. The market is anticipating lower cotton production for 2014-15 as compared to December’s estimates in Monday’s WASDE report by USDA.

Corn and grain sorghum prices were lower, with cash price bids 15 to 18 cents lower on grain sorghum and 9 to 15 cents lower on corn. Concerns that cheap crude oil will hurt ethanol margins are pressuring prices. Rough rice and soybeans saw gains in the futures market on Wednesday, but soybean meal closed lower.

Wheat prices were 11 to 14 cents lower, with little supportive news other than a firm dollar limiting exports and other row crops experiencing losses.

This week’s U.S. Drought Monitor for Texas showed almost a 7% improvement in the drought conditions with 61% of the state in some stage of drought intensity. 24% of the state remains in severe, extreme, or exceptional drought, down about 2 percent points from last week and about 5.5 points from three months ago. On the national level, almost 44% of the U.S. is experiencing abnormal dryness or some degree of drought, down about 2.5% from last week.

Stock markets were higher, fueled by a slight rebound in oil prices and a positive U.S. labor-market report. Crude oil futures have dropped about 53% over the last 6 months.

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.