Wednesday's Cattle Trading Quotes Mark Strong Market Work Across Live and Feeder Futures

Cattle trading activity intensified in late January as market participants responded to Wednesday’s active trading session. The quotes on offer reflected a broadly bullish tone, with both live and feeder cattle futures posting notable gains that demonstrated solid market work across multiple contract months.

Live Cattle Futures Rise Amid Wednesday Trading Activity

Live cattle futures showed impressive strength, with front-month contracts rallying 70 to 95 cents per hundredweight throughout Wednesday’s trading. The quotes being generated suggest underlying demand support, though the cash trade remained relatively quiet to start the week. A handful of bids at $236 per hundredweight emerged Wednesday, marking a slight uptick from the previous week’s range of $233 to $236.50 for live cattle and $370 for dressed beef.

The pricing action reflects the ongoing market work as traders assess weekly developments. February 26 Live Cattle futures settled at $236.525, up $0.925, while April 26 contracts reached $238.275, up $0.875. June 26 futures advanced more modestly to $233.950, up $0.700—evidence of profit-taking in the back months as quotation levels shifted.

Feeder Cattle Show Stronger Quotes in Wednesday’s Active Market Work

Feeder cattle demonstrated particularly robust performance, with futures gaining $1.10 to $2.50 during Wednesday’s trading session. The CME Feeder Cattle Index advanced $1.16 to $364.73, signaling solid underlying strength in the feeder market segment. Traders appeared engaged, with the quotes attracting follow-through buying interest.

January 26 Feeder Cattle futures rose $1.100 to $367.950, while March 26 posted a more impressive $2.425 gain to reach $364.425. April 26 Feeder Cattle climbed $2.350 to $363.000, reflecting the broad-based strength evident across the feeder complex as market work continued building momentum.

USDA Wholesale Beef Quotes Reflect Mixed Wednesday Market Signals

The USDA’s wholesale Boxed Beef report from Wednesday morning presented a more nuanced picture. While Choice box quotes advanced $1.14 to $369.25, Select boxes fell $1.46 to $363.73, causing the Chc/Sel spread to widen to $5.52. This divergence in quotes suggests market work remains selective, with quality premiums commanding attention among buyers.

The mixed signals in wholesale quotes underscore the complexity traders navigate when assessing fundamental cattle market dynamics. Premium cuts continue commanding stronger quotation levels relative to select grades, a pattern that influences cash market work throughout the week.

Cattle Slaughter Data and Weekly Trading Trends

USDA federally inspected cattle slaughter on Tuesday reached an estimated 112,000 head, with the weekly total standing at 212,000 head. This volume came in 7,000 head below the previous week and 24,878 head shy of the comparable week last year—a meaningful decline that underlies some of the quotation strength evident in Wednesday’s futures action.

The year-over-year deficit in slaughter volumes has contributed to the ongoing market work, as tighter supply dynamics support the quotes being bid throughout the cattle complex. This supply-side consideration provides fundamental backing to the price advances observed in recent trading sessions.

Analysis based on USDA data, CME quotations, and federally reported cattle slaughter figures as of late January. For additional commodity market insights and quotes on cattle, feeder cattle, and related contracts, market participants are encouraged to monitor official USDA releases and CME futures quotations.