Texas Agriculture Market Recap May 11, 2015

AUSTIN – For the week ending May 9, 2015, Texas auctions quoted feeder cattle prices mostly steady, with instances of sales ranging from $6 lower to$8 higher per hundredweight (cwt). Texas weekly direct feeder cattle sales were $1 to $3 higher. Wholesale beef values were higher, with Choice Grade gaining $3.48 to $258.12 per cwt and Select Grade gaining $3.60 to $246.82. Net export sales for April 24-30 were down 19 percent from the previous week. Export shipments were up 11 percent from the previous week, and shipments primarily went to Japan, Mexico and South Korea.

Cotton cash prices were 0.25 cents lower than the previous week and closed at 63.13 cents per pound. May futures prices fell 0.69 cents last week to settle at 66.16 cents per pound. For the reporting period of April 27-May 3, the USDA NASS Texas field office published that cotton planting was delayed in many areas of the state due to wet conditions. Net export cotton sales were 84 percent lower than the previous week’s sales. Shipments were up 45 percent from the previous week and 33 percent from the average.

Wheat cash and futures prices gained $0.10 and $0.19 respectively and closed at $4.65 per bushel and $5.11 per bushel respectively. The USDA NASS Texas field office reported that 82 percent of the Texas wheat crop is in the heading stage, with 52 percent of the acreage in good-to-excellent condition. Eighty-five percent of the Texas Winter Wheat crop remains in fair-to-excellent condition. Net export sales for wheat were up 67 percent from the previous week but down noticeably from the prior four-week average. Shipments were 53 percent lower than the previous week and 41 percent lower than the average.

Texas corn prices were mixed with cash prices up to $3.89 per bushel and futures prices down to $3.59 per bushel. The USDA NASS Texas field office reported that 60 percent of the planted Texas corn crop has emerged, up from 58 percent at the same point last year. Seventy percent of Texas corn acreage had been planted, up 14 percentage points from last week but down two percentage points from the same period last year. Corn export sales were up one percent from the previous week and 15 percent from the four-week average. Export shipments were 11 percent lower than last week but four percent higher than the average.

According to USDA NASS, areas of the Blacklands received up to eight inches of rain, while areas of the Plains, Cross Timbers and East Texas reported totals of a quarter of an inch up to six inches. Last week’s U.S. Drought Monitor for Texas showed a slight improvement in drought conditions for the state, with just over 40 percent of the state still experiencing some stage of drought intensity. Additionally, more than 15 percent of the state remains in severe, extreme or exceptional drought. On the national level, drought conditions worsened slightly with nearly 54 percent of the U.S. experiencing abnormal dryness or some degree of drought, up more than 2.50 percentage points from the previous week.

Additional information on agricultural weather, crop progress and agricultural markets can be found on the TDA Market News page. 

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.” MBF = thousand board feet. For additional information, contact TDA at (800) 835-5832 or visit our website, www.TexasAgriculture.gov.