13 August 2007

2 minute read

North America

Most of the fed cattle trade last week occurred in late week. Through Thursday, only a little over 11 thousand fed cattle moved through the negotiated trade. Through Friday, 218,628 head had changed ownership through the negotiated trade. Through Thursday, live fed cattle through the negotiated trade averaged $90.30 per cwt for the five-market area. Through Friday, the live trade was up $1.70 from Thursday at $92 per cwt. The dressed fed cattle trade Thursday averaged $143.50 for the five-market area. By the end of last Friday's trade, the dressed trade from Thursday was up $1.25 per cwt at $144.75 for the five-market area.

Cow slaughter for the year through the week ending July 21 was up 11.2 percent, dairy cow slaughter was up 10.4 percent and beef cow slaughter was up 11.7 percent from 12 months earlier. For the four weeks ending July 21, total cow slaughter was down 2 percent from a year earlier. Dairy cow slaughter for these four weeks was down 0.4 percent, and beef cow slaughter was down 3.2 percent from the same period in 2006.

A portion of the reversal in cow slaughter was due to a larger slaughter of beef cows for the four weeks ending July 21 in 2006 because of the dry weather in Texas, Oklahoma and southern Missouri. For the four weeks ending July 21, beef cow slaughter was 9.1 percent below the four weeks ending June 23. Therefore, we have reduced beef cow slaughter relative to earlier in the year as well as compared to the same period in 2006.

With a smaller number of beef heifers being held for cow herd replacement on July 1, 2007, the odds are high that the beef cow herd on January 1, 2008, will likely be a little below but very close to a year earlier.

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