Market Activity

Trading was quiet to start the week, typical for a mid-summer Monday.

For the last full week of July, cattle slaughter was up 2.1% compared to last year and up 0.8% compared to the week prior. Slaughter numbers are forecast to build onver the next six weeks, averaging 651,750 head before seeing lower numbers for the Labor Day holiday break. The combination of strong hog and cattle kills heading into September are likely to keep…