Live cattle futures posted gains of $1.82 to $3.52 cents across the board on Thursday. Cash trade picked up to $220 Wednesday, firming $2 from Tuesday, with a few dressed sales of $345 in the north. The Thursday morning Fed Cattle Exchange online auction showed dressed sales of $340-341 on 80 of the 2,002 head offered and other bids of $220. Feeder cattle futures were $3.10 to $3.97 higher on the session with August expiring up $1 at $333.75. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was down another 80 cents on August 26 to $333.47.
Export Sales data from USDA showed beef sales for 2026 at just 9,172 MT for the week ending on 8/20. That was a 6-week low. The lead buyer was Japan at 2,200 MT, with 2,100 MT sold to South Korea. Shipments were tallied at 11,806 MT, which was also a 6-week low. South Korea was the top destination of 3,700 MT, as 2,700 MT was headed to Japan.
