NATIONAL FEEDER & STOCKER CATTLE SUMMARY – WEEK ENDING 08/02/2025
By USDA-MO Dept of Ag Market News
RECEIPTS: Auctions Direct Video/Internet Total
This Week: 97,300 30,400 173,900 301,600
Last Week: 116,200 28,000 190,900 335,100
Year Ago: 106,300 48,600 221,300 376,200
Compared to last week, steers and heifers sold 4.00 to 10.00 higher. Good to very good demand for steers and heifers, auction receipts remain light as auction markets remain on their summer schedules and brutal heat early to mid- week.
Late in the week temperatures cooled bringing some much-needed relief and should allow for more pleasant marketing opportunities this coming week.
The market was very active as cattle feeders want to buy these yearlings when they are available. Some grass yearlings are starting to come to town already and are commanding robust prices as ranchers want to take advantage of receiving the most total dollars per head they ever have in history.
Buyers are having hard times currently finding enough cattle to fill orders as the dog days of summer have kept receipts limited. This isn't unusual for mid-summer and there are always a few weeks of extreme heat that makes transporting cattle a huge challenge.
The overall continuing conformation with each cattle report released which keeps showing overall tighter supplies continues to add fundamental support to the market. With feedlots tuning a hefty profit on slaughter steers and heifers, buyers are very willing to jump back into the historic cattle market. Many buyers are more concerned there will not be enough feeder cattle to go around more than the cost of the cattle in today's market.
With a bumper corn crop possibly on the horizon, many farmer/feeders are planning on walking their crop to town as they continue to purchase cattle to feed. The current fat cattle market is so much higher than was thought possible for this time of year, this fact is keeping the fire lit under the feeder cattle market.
In the CME Cattle Complex, futures were higher through Wednesday of the week and then Thursday happened a correction large enough to wipe out three days of higher closes.
Thursday's losses were over 5.00 on the Live Cattle and many Feeder Cattle contracts were more than 8.00 lower.
Cattle feeders paid no attention to the fluctuations of the futures, as they instead focused on the strong market fundamentals.
Replacement cattle are also in demand as some bred heifers at Gidding (TX) Livestock sold from $5100.00 to 5200.00 per head.
Negotiated sales of fed cattle in Kansas sold 4.00 to 5.00 higher at 235.00 to 236.00. In TX/OK/NM, live sales sold 3.00 to 5.00 higher at 235.00.
In Nebraska, live sales were 2.00 to 3.00 higher at 245.00 to 247.00; while dressed sales were steady to 3.00 higher at 383.00.
For the week, Choice Boxed beef closed on Friday at 363.22, 3.46 lower and Select closed at 340.50, 4.37 lower.
Weekly Cattle Slaughter under federal inspection estimated at 535K, 14K less last week and 57K less than a year ago.
Auction volume this week included 55 percent weighing over 600 lbs and 40 percent heifers.
