Live cattle futures posted mixed trade with nearbys within 15 cents of unchanged and deferred contracts higher. Cash trade has been slow this week, with some northern dressed action at $385 and live trade at $245. The Thursday Fed Cattle Exchange online auction showed no sales on the 1,264 head, with bids of $235 in KS and $237 in CO. Feeder cattle futures closed the Thursday session mixed, as contracts were 60 cents higher to a dime lower in the nearbys. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was up $1.86 to $347.44 on August 20.
USDA will release Cattle on Feed data on Friday afternoon, with analysts looking for July placements at 8.9% below last year and marketings down 5.9% from 2024. August 1 on feed inventory is estimated to be down 2%.
