Texas Daily Ag Market Summary 1/12/15

Posted 9 years 320 days ago by

· Feeder cattle steady to $4 higher; futures sharply lower.
· Fed cattle cash trade inactive; formula trades lower; futures sharply lower; beef prices higher.
· Cotton higher.
· Grains and soybeans mostly higher; wheat lower.
· Crude oil lower; natural gas higher.
· Stock markets lower.

Texas feeder cattle auctions quoted prices steady to $4 higher. Feeder cattle futures were sharply lower in response to bearish fed cattle futures. The Texas fed cattle cash trade was inactive on Friday. Wholesale boxed beef values were sharply higher. Estimated cattle harvest for the week totaled 538,000 head, up 86K from the previous week, but down 35K from a year ago. Year-to-date harvest is down 6.1%. Fed cattle futures were also sharply lower, down its trading limit. The numbers remain volatile as the market awaits an inventory report to provide a direction for prices. Analysts are unsure if this dip in prices is another set of short term selling or an estimate of a long-term trend.

Cotton cash prices and futures were higher on Friday as traders settle positions before Monday’s USDA estimated supply-demand report. It’s projected that world production for 2015 will fall below consumption for the first time in 6 years, with lower acreage expected in the U.S., Australia, Brazil and China.

Corn and grain sorghum prices were both higher as speculative traders prepare for the WASDE report scheduled to be released today at 11 a.m. EST. Support also came from a large sale of corn (136,000 MT) to South Korea and milo (116,000 MT) to an unknown destination.

Wheat prices continued to drop, however, with warmer weather forecasts for this week for North America and an estimate that world ending stocks will rise in today’s USDA WASDE report.

Stock markets were lower, despite a stronger-than-expected jobs report from U.S. Department of Labor. Traders were focused on the negative average wage growth that fell in the month of December. However, unemployment fell to 5.6%, its lowest level since June 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.