We could easily call this episode of the Beef Market Update the "even Steven" episode or the "good news bad news" episode as it seems as though every point has a counter-point and every yin, a yang. In some cases it's less of a counter-point than it is a "wait just a minute, not so... Read More
Category: Podcasts
"The number one cure for high prices is high prices" That also was a pretty good reflection of the mood surrounding the Saskatchewan Stock Growers annual general meeting this week. There is great optimism for the rancher heading into the fall run as I expect feeder cattle to have strong prices attached to them. Whether... Read More
This friday is the release of the USDA Cattle on Feed report and the early consensus is that US feedyard placements will be confirmed tighter. As Anne discusses in the video, this is the scenario that many thought would play out last year but the drought proved otherwise. An interesting issue is that there is... Read More
This edition of the Beef Market Update is.......complicated. Let's start with the things we expected. We knew those summer lows were coming and we knew that risk management would be extremely valuable to producers in this volatile market. We even expected a little bit of the unexpected, i.e. a recent case of BSE in California.... Read More
In this episode of the Beef Market Update, we break down the latest U.S., Alberta and Saskatchewan Cattle on Feed reports. As far as the reports go, there are no big surprises with numbers up 3% in both. What do those aggressive placements mean for numbers come summer? What kind of lows can we expect... Read More
One of the questions on every producers mind is, "How long can these prices continue?" Looking at the demand side, we don't see any real indication beside the seasonal dips that regularly occur. On the skeptical side however, whenever we have an extended run like this we have a tendency to wait for the other... Read More
If a person were to describe the overall mood of this year's NCBA Conference, it would be descibed as price bullish and margin bearish. As we have mentioned before, it's a cautious optimism for feeders and packers, which comes with a recognition of the volatility that producers have gone through and are also facing in... Read More
Volatility was the recurring theme in the cattle industry over 2011. The fact is that the mood created by that volatility has carried into 2012. Even with things looking up for producers, the violent swings of the 2011 market are tempering any optimism with caution. Those sentiments were apparent at this year's Tiffin Conference as... Read More
It's Christmas on this episode of the Beef Market Update and this year we get Anne to give us her Christmas list. 2011 hasn't been a perfect year. The Beef Market Christmas tree has a few bright ornaments and a few broken branches to mark the 2011 calendar year. The year finished with some bright... Read More
Where will 2012 see the cattle market go? Who's star will rise? there is potential for a great year for the cattle feeder depending on where the global economy will leave the Canadian Dollar and the demand for beef. That profitability could be tempered by rising feeder costs. The cow calf producer looks to be... Read More