Speculators start running for the exits

Has sentiment among US “smart money” traders suddenly turned bearish against wheat after the buying-spree seen a month ago? The Net position of CBOT Managed Money traders in SRW wheat has fallen 13% in a single week, bringing their proportion of open interest in the market down to 5.5%. The speculators are starting to sell […]

Sheep and lamb offtake

Sheep in paddock with farmer in distance

Good seasonal conditions across eastern Australia during 2020 have provided relief to the flock size, by allowing farmers to hold stock back from sale in order to rebuild sheep numbers. This article takes a look at how this process is going. Mecardo last looked at the sheep offtake in Australia in June 2020, noting that […]

Cattle slaughter not on track

Mixed young southern cattle

As the herd rebuild has taken hold, cattle slaughter has slumped to extremely low levels in the first quarter of 2021. After such low numbers going through processors, Meat and Livestock Australia’s (MLA) annual forecast is looking like it might be on the high side. For the year to date east coast cattle slaughter has […]