AgResource Daily Cattle Analysis: Cattle and feeder cattle futures were lower on Monday, and a steady outlook is offered for early trade today. Live cattle futures remained in a narrow range and finished just below unchanged, while feeder cattle held in a similarly narrow range and ended lightly mixed on higher November pricing.
Cash markets were quiet on Monday, and active trade is expected to hold until at least Wednesday. Small numbers reportedly sold in IA on Monday for $183-184 or steady to $1 higher from last week. Last week’s uptick in cash trade was a surprise, given the decline that has taken place over the last 2 months. The 5-area average live price gained $1, and the dressed price was up $3. Negotiated prices were the lowest for 5 weeks but were $1 above formula sales last week, possibly signaling a change in trends. Negotiated grid sales saw the highest prices of $301 and were $11 over formula sales.
Nearby futures found support near a long-term trend line last week. The first technical target is a chart gap at $182.40, left at the August expiration.
