Livestock Marketing Information Center
In The Cattle Markets
Updated: 11/17/2025
The Fundamentals and [finally] a Little Data to Support Them
The last several weeks have brought no shortage of headlines for the cattle industry, and the repercussions have certainly been seen in the cattle market. If there is one thing markets hate, it is uncertainty and talk about trying to “fix” it. However, as has been reiterated over the last few weeks, the fundamentals of where we are in the cattle cycle have not changed: tight supplies, strong demand, and slow expansion efforts.
Livestock Monitor
Updated: 11/7/2025
REGIONAL FEEDER CATTLE PRICE UPDATE
Calf and feeder cattle values have softened in recent weeks after impressive growth through a large majority of this year; these events following headlines flush with announcements and news coming out of Washington D.C. Ignoring that noise, we will provide a snapshot of what’s being observed regionally across the U.S.
PORK PRICES MOVE SEASONALLY LOWER
Pork prices continue to move seasonally lower into the fourth quarter of the year. The pork cutout peaked at $120.72 per cwt in late June. Since that peak value in late June, the pork cutout value has fallen about $20 per cwt (-17%) to last week’s value of $100.71 per cwt and will likely continue to move seasonally lower. Compared to the same week last year, the pork cutout value was down $1.64 per cwt (-2%). The year-over-year decline of the pork cutout last week is due to a counter-seasonal move higher in late October, which quickly subsided in November. This rise was driven by increases in primal values for the rib and belly.
TURKEY INDUSTRY STRUGGLING WITH AVIAN INFLUENZA
High Path Avian Influenza (HPAI) is resurfacing as a major problem as the turkey industry gets turkeys ready to move into marketing channels for the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons. Confirmed cases in birds destined for meat consumption totaled 846,000 head in October, according to the USDA Animal-Plant Health Inspection Service, compared to none in October 2024. The November tally stands at 162,900 birds in the first week of the month. Last year, the total for November was 891,400 birds, so the current monthly trend could be similar to a year ago.
Livestock Monitor (pdf)