Source: Texas Department of Agriculture
For the week ending Sept. 12, 2015, most Texas auctions quoted feeder cattle prices $2 to $15 higher. However, one auction did note prices up to $7 lower per hundredweight (cwt). Wholesale beef values were lower, with Choice Grade losing $2.97 to close at $239.06 per cwt and Select Grade losing $1.37 to close at $226.73 per cwt. Net export sales totaling 10,500 metric tons (MT) for Aug. 28 – Sept. 3 were down 20 percent from the previous week. Export shipments of 9,300 MT were down 14 percent from the previous week. Shipments primarily went to Japan, Mexico and Hong Kong.
Cotton cash prices were 0.50 cents higher than the previous week and closed at 60.88 cents per pound. October futures prices settled at 64.09 cents per pound, 0.61 cents higher than last week. Net export cotton sales totaled 83,400 bales. The primary destinations were South Korea, Mexico and Turkey.
Wheat cash and futures prices gained $0.04 and $0.05 to settle at $4.01 per bushel and $4.59 per bushel, respectively. Net exports for wheat were 290,400 MT, with increased purchases reported for Vietnam, Guatemala and Indonesia.
Texas corn prices were higher, with cash prices gaining $0.12 and futures prices gaining $0.13 to settle at $3.99 and $3.75 per bushel, respectively. Corn export sales were 411,200 MT. Export shipments were 640,900 MT, and the primary destinations were Japan, Mexico and Colombia.
This week’s Drought Monitor for Texas showed a worsening of drought conditions for the state, with approximately 47 percent of Texas still in some stage of drought intensity. On the national level, drought conditions also worsened, with nearly 46 percent of the U.S. experiencing abnormal dryness or some degree of drought.
Additional information on agricultural weather, crop progress and agricultural markets can be found on the TDA Market News page.