Texas Daily Ag Market Summary 2/4/15

Posted 9 years 297 days ago by

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

Texas feeder cattle auctions quoted prices steady to $2 higher per hundredweight. Feeder cattle futures were lower with traders still adjusting to the large cattle inventory report. The Texas fed cattle cash trade was quiet on Tuesday. Wholesale boxed beef values were mixed again, creating a wider spread between Choice Grade that was higher and Select Grade that was lower. Estimated cattle harvest through Tuesday totaled 217,000 head, down 6K from the previous week, and 10K from a year ago. Year-to-date harvest is down 4.4%. Fed cattle futures were higher due to support in boxed beef prices after gaining back some earlier losses in the day.

All row crop futures were bullish. Texas cotton cash prices were on average ¾ of a cent higher, and futures closed with a triple digit gain to 61.45 cents per pound, its highest price in 2015. Exports continue to give support to the market as well as gains in crude oil and a strong cash basis. Analysts are still projecting a significant drop in acreage in both the U.S. and the world.

Corn and grain sorghum prices were 4% to 4.3% higher in their respective markets. With rising crude oil prices and a weakening dollar, potential for ethanol gains and export opportunities helped support the increase as well as strong gains for soybeans. USDA’s attaché in Brazil issued a low soybean production estimate for 2014-2015.

Wheat prices were also higher following the lead of the weaker dollar, up 4.8% in the Texas High Plains and 4.5% in the futures market. Middle Eastern countries and Japan are tendering for wheat, so the market will begin to see the competitiveness of U.S. wheat.

Stock markets were higher after an increase in energy shares tied to a rise in the price of oil. Crude oil futures prices jumped 7 percent to $53.05 per barrel, its highest price in over a month.

Daily Market Summary Data for 2/4/2015

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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.