Cattle Rally Extends as Grains Chop and Cotton Advances in Post‑Holiday Trade

Overview

• Live cattle added 50–75 cents and feeder cattle gained $3.20–$3.45 on Tuesday, with last week’s cash trade at $232–$233 and the Feeder Cattle Index up to $362.37.
• Reports of New World Screwworm detections in Mexico contributed to cattle strength by raising concern over the timing of feeder imports across the southern border.
• USDA catch‑up data for the holiday week showed wheat sales at 95,385 MT (below expectations), corn at 756,419 MT (low end of estimates), and soybeans at 1.178 MMT, alongside a confirmed 336,000 MT private soybean sale to China.
• U.S. corn export shipments reached 1.207 MMT for the week ending Jan. 1 and total commitments climbed to 50.538 MMT (62% of USDA’s projection), while managed money flipped to a net short position.
• Cotton futures rose for a second session despite export commitments of 6.5 million running bales as of Dec. 25 (57% of USDA’s target and behind the 75% average pace), and soybeans and wheat slipped into Tuesday’s close.