Starting this week’s episode of the Beef Market Update with Anne Wasko of the Gateway Livestock Exchange, is some positivity when it comes to trading fat cattle in both the U.S. and Western Canada.
In the southern U.S., the fats are trading around the $122 mark, with the northern states around the $126-$128 mark, says Wasko.
“In Western Canada, our dressed price from the average of last week to the high of yesterday’s trade of $260 will be about $6 dressed. So $2-3 live higher, so better news on that front all the way around,” she says.
Wasko also notes that when talking about cash trade, she likes to take a look at the wholesale price as well, which is creating yet another storyline for itself, as it hit a new record high for August.
“The choice cutout last night was at $341.60. That’s $24 higher than a week ago,” Wasko exclaims. “That even surpasses numbers we had last spring. You don’t typically talk about an August wholesale market beating what we saw in May and June — but this one does.”
If you’ve made it this far, you’re likely asking the same question we are: is there a why attached to that record?
Bottom line, says Wasko, is the U.S. just hasn’t been hitting the slaughter rates they were anticipating.
“Supply hasn’t been quite as big as people thought. And then you stir that up with now we’ve got some Labour Day beef demand. Those export levels have just been solid, and beef buyers just look like they don’t want to get caught short,” she explains.
Check out the full conversation between Wasko and RealAg Radio host Shaun Haney, below:
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS | All Podcasts
