Insights and Stories on USDA

Beef Cattle Hogs Livestock Markets Reuters

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs surge on pork export optimism

Aug. 24, 2015 at 7:19 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters –– U.S. lean hog futures surged about five per cent on Monday, reversing from one-month lows on investor optimism that a weaker dollar would spark increased export demand for pork, traders and analysts said. Live cattle fell to a roughly one-month low while feeder cattle futures declined […]

U.S. grains: Futures slump on weather, China gloom

Aug. 21, 2015 at 3:47 pm CDT

By P.J. Huffstutter

U.S. livestock: Economic fears slam CME live cattle, hogs

Aug. 21, 2015 at 3:38 pm CDT

By Theopolis Waters

StatsCan production estimates ‘too low’ for canola, wheat

Aug. 21, 2015 at 10:02 am CDT

By Terryn Shiells

U.S. grains: Soybeans bounce from six-year low

Aug. 20, 2015 at 5:20 pm CDT

By Karl Plume

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle rise with cash bids

Aug. 20, 2015 at 5:13 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed higher on Thursday, supported by short-covering after packers hiked bids for unsold market-ready (cash) cattle, traders said. Spot-August futures closed 1.225 cents/lb. higher at 146.475 cents, and October 1.175 cents higher at 146.325 cents (all figures US$). Processors in […]

By Theopolis Waters

CBOT weekly outlook: Soy bearish, corn bullish ahead of tour results

Aug. 20, 2015 at 10:58 am CDT

CNS Canada — Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) corn and soybean traders are eagerly awaiting the results of a multi-state crop tour, while concerns over Chinese demand are also overhanging the markets. The Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour’s full results are due to be released Friday. So far the tour […]

By Jade Markus

U.S. livestock: Fallen cash prices rattle CME live cattle

Aug. 19, 2015 at 7:49 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures suffered their fourth straight day of losses on Wednesday after digesting sharply lower preliminary prices for market-ready (cash) cattle, traders said. Spot-August futures closed down 1.95 cents/lb. to 145.25 cents, and October 2.25 cents lower at 145.15 cents (all figures […]

By Theopolis Waters

USDA moves to build vaccine stockpile for bird flu return

Aug. 18, 2015 at 7:35 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday it has put out a request for proposals to help the nation’s veterinarians have access to bird flu vaccines for poultry this fall, in preparation for the potential return of the fast-spreading avian influenza virus. The agency’s Animal and […]

By P.J. Huffstutter

Klassen: Feeder cattle market tenacious

Aug. 17, 2015 at 7:22 pm CDT

Western Canadian feeder cattle prices appeared to shrug off all negative economic news and divorce from the fed cattle complex this past week. Volumes were once again quite thin, characterized by varying quality. Feedlot operators were active on all fronts, especially in southern Alberta where the barley harvest is in […]

By Jerry Klassen