Cattle on Feed USDA will release its monthly Cattle on Feed report tomorrow. Pre-report estimates from the industry peg the total number of cattle on feed as of 1 March at 108 percent of last year with February placements and marketings at 104.5 percent and 101.5 percent, respectively. For reference, February had the same number of business days (20) in both 2017 and 2018. The range of projections for placements is very wide at 0.3-8.8 percent growth from last year. Regional drought conditions are the reason for the more robust estimates. There is a bit more consensus on marketings, which have increased year-over-year every month since August 2016 with the exception of December.
February beef production totaled 1.98 billion...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
The big news in the cattle markets yesterday was Tyson Foods’ move to close two more beef plants. One of them, the Joslin, Illinois, plant was shuttered immediately after the announcement. The other, in Eagle Mountain, Utah, is a case-ready plant that does not slaughter cattle. Tyson also...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
