Live cattle futures fell $3.35 to $5.95 lower into the Thursday close. Open interest was up 1,031 contracts, with June down 2,610 contracts and the rest of the board with rising OI. Cash trade has been limited so far this week with a few $260 sales in KS and $265 in the North. The Thursday Fed Cattle Exchange online auction showed no sales on the 652 head offered, with bids of $260. Feeder cattle futures were down $1.60 in the expiring May contract, with the rest of the board down $8.75 to the $9.25 limit. Feeders will have expanded limits of $13.75 on Friday, with expanded live cattle limits of $10.75. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was down $1.72 to $370.72 on May 20. The CME will be closed on Monday for Memorial Day, with the Tuesday session showing a normal open.
The Thursday APHIS update on the New World Screwworm showed a total of 2,014 active cases of in Mexico as of Wednesday. There were 150 active cases in the bordering state of Tamaulipas (8 within a range of 82-96 miles of the US border), 94 active in Nuevo Leon (14 within a range of 57-99 miles of the US border), and 15 in Coahuila (1 within 72 miles of the US border).
