US Cattle Market Review for Week 7, February 17, 2025

April live cattle futures on the CME fell 2.275 cents to 194.25 cents per pound. March feeder cattle futures fell 1.625 cents to 266.35 cents per pound.

CME will be closed for trading on Monday in observance of President's Day.

Beef prices fell Friday , riding a seasonal slowdown during a month without major beef-eating holidays and ahead of outdoor grilling season.

A weaker dollar, which makes American goods more competitive on the global market, provided some support for futures. The dollar weakened after Trump decided not to impose further tariffs on Thursday, boosting commodities priced in the dollar.

Trump's decision to task his team of economists with preparing tariff plans was seen by investors as leaving room for negotiations, although traders remained wary of a potential trade war and retaliatory measures against US agricultural exports.

"This order could have a bigger effect over time," said Matthew Wiegand, a broker at FuturesOne.

Friday's daily report reported that block beef prices fell $2.70, with the Choice/Select spread narrowing to $7.56. According to the USDA , cattle slaughter this week was estimated at 561,000 head. This is 23,000 head fewer than last week and 47,466 head fewer than the same week last year.

WEEKLY COST OF CUTLERY CUT.CHOICE

CATTLE SALES

Sale of cattle, heads

Average weight

Week 6

Week 7

Weekly growth,%

Week 6

Week 7

Weekly growth,%

Bulls (live weight)

24,386

5,665

-76.8%

1,529

1,481

-3.1%

Heifers (live weight)

9 165

3 215

-64.9%

1,336

1,345

0.7%

Bulls (slaughter weight)

12,938

2,532

-80.4%

986

975

-1.1%

Heifers (slaughter weight)

2,347

322

-86.3%

851

844

-0.8%

WEEKLY WEIGHTED AVERAGE PRICE OF BULLS

BEEF PRODUCTION                                                                     

Indicator

Week 7

Previous week

A year ago

Weekly growth,%

Growth per year, %

Volume of cattle slaughter

561,000

584,000

584,000

-3.9%

-3.9%

Live weight

1,439

1,442

1,442

-0.2%

-0.2%

Slaughter weight

874

876

876

-0.2%

-0.2%

Beef production (million pounds)

489.2

510.6

510.6

-4.2%

-4.2%

CME: Live Cattle Futures

Week 6

Week 7

Weekly growth,%

February

200.78

197.75

-1.5%

April

196.78

194.25

-1.3%

June

192.10

190.45

-0.9%

CME: Feeder Cattle Futures

March

264.90

266.35

0.5%

April

264.83

266.43

0.6%

May

263.60

265.00

0.5%

For more information on the US cattle market (cattle prices, beef prices by category, and production trends), check out Meatinfo.ru's weekly meat market reviews in Russia and globally. These weekly reviews are available with a subscription.