Cash feeders continue 2024 gains. Small premiums in back month futures are questioned.

Monday's sale barn trade in Oklahoma City saw steady to $4 gains. For our category we monitor the gain was +$2.63 from last week. This marks a $25 gain over the major low two months ago in the first week of December.

Some of this gain is seasonal. The yearly lows for cash feeders is in Q1 and the highest pricing is in July/August. But the current rebound, likely driven by declining supplies of numbers outside feedlots, for future placements, has been quite strong. Cash feeder prices are currently 30% over last year.

The continued gains in early 2024 cash pricing bring questions about deferred futures pricing. August and September are only +8% vs. last year, October is +15%.

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