TDA Market Recap, Oct. 19, 2015

Source: Texas Department of Agriculture
For the week ending Oct. 17, 2015, Texas auctions quoted feeder cattle prices $2 to $10 higher. Wholesale beef values were higher, with Choice Grade gaining $6.39 to close at $211.69 per cwt and Select Grade gaining $7.24 to close at $206.36 per cwt. Net sales of 14,000 MT for 2015 were up 69 percent from the previous week and 23 percent from the prior 4-week average. Increases were reported for South Korea, Hong Kong and Mexico. Exports of 11,700 MT were up 1 percent from the previous week and 7 percent from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations were Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea.
Cotton cash prices were higher at the end of the week, gaining 2.00 cents and closing at 61.62 cents per pound. October futures prices settled at 63.85 cents per pound, gaining 2.16 cents for the week. Net upland sales totaling 67,300 RB for 2015/2016 were down 68 percent from the previous week and 47 percent from the prior 4-week average. Increases were reported for Indonesia, Vietnam and South Korea. Exports of 67,400 RB were down 47 percent from the previous week and 26 percent from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations were Mexico, Vietnam and Turkey.
Wheat prices were lower at the close of last week with cash prices losing $0.17 and futures prices losing $0.14 to settle at $4.01 and $4.84 per bushel, respectively. Net sales of 460,400 metric tons for delivery in marketing year 2015/2016 were up 60 percent from the previous week and 80 percent from the prior 4-week average. Increases were Yemen, Japan and Nigeria. Exports of 374,700 MT were down 34 percent from the previous week and 35 percent from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations were the Philippines, Japan and Yemen.
Corn cash and futures prices were lower at the close of last week. Corn cash prices lost $0.05 and futures prices lost $0.03 to close at $3.87 per bushel and $3.78 per bushel, respectively. Net sales of 598,400 MT for 2015/2016 were up 15 percent from the previous week. Increases reported for Mexico, Colombia and Japan. Grain sorghum prices gained $0.02 to settle at $5.92 per cwt.
This week’s U.S. Drought Monitor for Texas showed a slight improvement in drought conditions for the state, with 63.53 percent of Texas still in some stage of drought intensity, down 6.77 percentage points from last week. Additionally, 31.88 percent of the state remains in severe, extreme, or exceptional drought, down 24.92 percentage points from three months ago. On the national level, drought conditions worsened slightly, with 53.39 percent of the U.S. experiencing abnormal dryness or some degree of drought, up 2.38 percentage points from last week.
Additional information on agricultural weather, crop progress and agricultural markets can be found on the TDA Market News page.

MBF = thousand board feet.
All cash prices above are market averages for locations covered by the USDA Market News program and do not reflect any particular sale at any specific location. Feeder cattle prices are for Texas direct sales of 650-850 pound medium and large No.1 steers for current delivery. Futures prices are quoted for the nearest month contract on the last trading day of the week. Timber prices are from the Texas A&M Forest Service, bimonthly “Texas Timber Price Trends.”
For additional information, contact TDA at 800-835-5832 or visit www.TexasAgriculture.gov.