# CME cattle futures climb as smaller U.S. herd attracts spec buyers | Reuters

> CME live cattle futures set life-of-contract highs on Friday as speculative buyers responded to a USDA report showing a 3% year-on-year drop in the U.S. cattle herd. Feeder cattle futures also closed higher, with the March contract up at 186.100 cents per pound.

- Date: 2023-02-04 · published 2023-02-04T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: report · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/10211-cme-cattle-futures-climb-as-smaller-u-s-herd-attracts-spec-buyers-reuters
- Commodities: [Live Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/LCATTLE.md), [Feeder Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/FCATTLE.md)

## Why it matters

A shrinking herd tightens future beef supply, supporting cattle prices and feeder values for buyers and feedlots.

## Read by commodity

- FCATTLE: bullish ▲
- LCATTLE: bullish ▲

## Linked price moves

| Commodity | Date | Window | Change % | z-score | Why linked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LCATTLE | 2023-02-06 | 1 | +1.1% | 3.4 | Speculative buying set life-of-contract highs after the herd report, and that momentum carried into Monday. |

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LCATTLE | 2022-10-24 | [Live cattle futures jump to 7-year peak as U.S. herd shrinks \| Reuters](https://feedsoft.ai/events/8063-live-cattle-futures-jump-to-7-year-peak-as-u-s-herd-shrinks-reuters.md) | +1.0% | +2.8% |
| LCATTLE | 2020-06-18 | [CME update: cattle futures mixed as traders await USDA report
						 \| The Beef Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52752-cme-update-cattle-futures-mixed-as-traders-await-usda-report-the-beef-site.md) | -3.4% | -0.8% |
| LCATTLE | 2024-09-23 | [US cattle futures finish higher, USDA data seen as neutral - CME
						 \| The Cattle Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/28447-us-cattle-futures-finish-higher-usda-data-seen-as-neutral-cme-the-cattle-site.md) | +0.9% | +2.8% |
| LCATTLE | 2017-08-28 | [Cattle Futures Climb on Slower Placements \| Fox Business](https://feedsoft.ai/events/69587-cattle-futures-climb-on-slower-placements-fox-business.md) | -1.7% | +0.8% |
| LCATTLE | 2025-07-28 | [US cattle futures rise on record-low herd, tight supply - CME
						 \| The Beef Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/23895-us-cattle-futures-rise-on-record-low-herd-tight-supply-cme-the-beef-site.md) | +1.1% | +3.8% |
| FCATTLE | 2022-10-24 | [Live cattle futures jump to 7-year peak as U.S. herd shrinks \| Reuters](https://feedsoft.ai/events/8063-live-cattle-futures-jump-to-7-year-peak-as-u-s-herd-shrinks-reuters.md) | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| FCATTLE | 2020-06-18 | [CME update: cattle futures mixed as traders await USDA report
						 \| The Beef Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52752-cme-update-cattle-futures-mixed-as-traders-await-usda-report-the-beef-site.md) | -0.5% | +6.8% |
| FCATTLE | 2024-09-23 | [US cattle futures finish higher, USDA data seen as neutral - CME
						 \| The Cattle Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/28447-us-cattle-futures-finish-higher-usda-data-seen-as-neutral-cme-the-cattle-site.md) | +0.9% | +1.4% |

## Sources

- reuters.com: https://www.reuters.com/article/business/cme-cattle-futures-climb-as-smaller-us-herd-attracts-spec-buyers-idUSL1N34J2RT/

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.