TDA Market Recap August 10, 2015 (8/10/2015)

AUSTIN – (August 10, 2015) For the week ending August 8th, 2015, Texas auctions quoted feeder cattle prices mostly steady, with instances of sales ranging from $2 lower to $8 higher per hundredweight (cwt). Texas weekly direct feeder cattle sales were $1.00 to $4.00 higher regaining part of what was lost last week. Wholesale beef values were higher, with Choice Grade gaining $3.09 to close at $264.34 per cwt and Select Grade gaining $0.85 to close at $230.14 per cwt. Net export sales totaling 5,900 metric tons (MT) for July 24 – July 30 were down six percent from the previous week. Export shipments of 10,500 MT were down 11 percent from the previous week. Shipments primarily went to Japan, South Korea, and Mexico.

Cotton cash prices were 1.50 cents lower than the previous week and closed at 57.88 cents per pound. October futures prices settled at 62.77 cents per pound, 1.24 cents lower than last week. For the reporting period of July 27 – August 2, the USDA NASS Texas field office indicated that 89 percent of cotton acreage is in the squaring stage, up 10 percentage points from the previous week, but down three percentage points from last year. Net export cotton sales were down noticeably from the previous week’s sales. Shipments were up 11 percent from the previous week and eight percent from the average. The primary destinations were Vietnam, Turkey, and South Korea.

Wheat cash prices lost $0.01 and futures prices gained $0.01 to settle at $4.37 per bushel and $4.93 per bushel, respectively. The USDA NASS Texas field office reported that 100 percent of the Texas wheat crop has been harvested, with 47% of wheat acreage in Good to Excellent condition. Net export sales for wheat were 838,500 MT, with increased purchases reported for the Dominican Republic, Japan, and the Philippines.

Texas corn prices were higher, with cash prices up to $3.99 per bushel and futures prices up to $3.73 per bushel. The USDA NASS Texas field office reported 91 percent of the Texas corn crop is in the silking stage, with 57% of corn acreage in Good to Excellent condition. Corn export sales were down noticeably from the previous week and from the prior four-week average. Export shipments were six percent lower than the previous week and seven percent lower than the average.

This week’s U.S. Drought Monitor for Texas showed a worsening of drought conditions for the state, with 27.67% of Texas still in some stage of drought intensity. Additionally, none of the state remains in extreme or exceptional drought, down 5.48 percentage points from three months ago. On the national level, drought conditions also worsened, with 42.29% of the U.S. experiencing abnormal dryness or some degree of drought, up 3.40 percentage points from last week.

Additional information on agricultural weather, crop progress and agricultural markets can be found on the TDA Market News page. 

All cash prices above are market averages for locations covered by the USDA Market News program and do not reflect any particular sale at any specific location. Feeder cattle prices are for Texas direct sales of 650-850 pound medium and large No.1 steers for current delivery. Futures prices are quoted for the nearest month contract on the last trading day of the week. Timber prices are from the Texas A&M Forest Service, bimonthly “Texas Timber Price Trends.” MBF = thousand board feet. For additional information, contact TDA at (800) 835-5832 or visit our website, www.TexasAgriculture.gov.