(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle drop on weak cash prices, big supply

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures dropped for a third straight session on Wednesday on weakening cash cattle prices and plentiful supplies of market-ready animals, traders said. Actively traded CME August live cattle futures settled 1.35 cents lower at 99.05 cents/lb., its lowest since April 4 (all figures US$). June cattle […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle slump again on falling cash prices

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell sharply for a second straight session on Tuesday, pressured by technical selling and weakening cash cattle prices, traders said. Large numbers of slaughter-ready cattle are expected to continue flooding the market over near term and futures prices have slumped in anticipation of a cash […] Read more



(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: June live cattle limit down in technical selloff

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures tumbled two per cent or more on Monday, with the front-month June contract falling by its three-cents per pound daily limit in a technical selloff, traders said. Sufficient cattle supplies and weaker trades last week in U.S. Plains cash steer markets also weighed on futures. […] Read more


U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer walks toward reporters ahead of a meeting with his Canadian and Mexican counterparts to discuss talks on modernizing the NAFTA trade deal, in Washington, D.C. on May 11. (Photo: Reuters/David Ljunggren)

Negotiators fail to reach NAFTA deal

Washington | Reuters — Senior U.S., Canadian and Mexican officials on Friday ended a week of talks without a deal to modernize NAFTA, agreeing instead to resume negotiations soon, ahead of a deadline next week issued by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan. The failure to secure a quick deal underscores uncertainty over the […] Read more



U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan (left) tours ag retailer Blain’s Farm and Fleet with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue in August 2017. (Paulryan.house.gov)

Ryan sets May 17 deadline for NAFTA deal

Washington | Reuters — U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan has set a May 17 deadline to be notified of a new NAFTA trade deal to give the current Congress a chance of passing it, while Mexico’s top trade official on Thursday said time was running short to meet such a deadline. Ryan, who controls legislation […] Read more



(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: Short-covering boosts CME live cattle

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed higher on Thursday after short-covering and fund buying reversed the previous session’s losses, said traders. In a trading strategy known as bull spreads, traders bought June and simultaneously sold deferred months, stirred by firmer wholesale beef values and future’s discount to expected cash prices […] Read more

Ford’s 2018 Super Duty King Ranch Crew Cab pickup. (Ford.com)

Ford scrambles to restart truck production after fire at supplier

Detroit | Reuters — Ford Motor Co. is working with a key supplier to shift some parts production from Michigan to Ontario, after a fire and subsequent parts shortages forced the automaker to halt manufacturing of its highly profitable full-size pickups, according to sources familiar with the companies’ plans. The supplier, Chinese-owned Meridian Magnesium Products, […] Read more