Association Perspective

Summer video market update.

by Kurt Kangas, American Angus Association

Summer video markets are in full swing out West. Coming into this marketing cycle, there were a lot of questions about pricing and what would be the market’s reaction to all that has been going on in the world. It would not have been unreasonable to think prices for calves could have been similar to slightly higher than last year. With drought still gripping much of the West and Midwest; input costs seeming to never stop their march upward; and volatility in the grain, energy and livestock boards, it is easy to slip into a sense of pessimism.

With several of the major video companies having big summer sales in July, it has been a relief to see the prices up from last year. In some cases, prices are up substantially. From light steer calves to big yearlings, most weight classes are up anywhere from 10% to 18% on average from last year. Some individual lots are pushing up to 20% higher than last year.

Demand for high-quality black calves has been extraordinary these first weeks of July, with a very active buyer base from the United States and Canada. Program calves through AngusLink^SM have seen good demand, and participants in the program have been rewarded with some of the higher prices this week. Non-Hormone Treated Cattle (NHTC) and Never Ever (NE3, no antibiotics, hormones or animal by-products) steers have seen decent premiums over their non-program counterparts.

The market for the heifer calves continues to be roughly $20-$25 less than the steers on the lighter heifers, with the gap in pricing narrowing to $7-$10 back on the heavier yearling heifers. Split loads of light calves are trading behind the straight loads of steers. The amount depends on the ratio of heifers to steers on the load.

Looking into the next six weeks, prices should remain fairly high (barring some unforeseen incident). The heifer market should improve as more replacement-type females are sold on the videos in August. Demand for program cattle should remain strong, as it appears that the demand for those cattle has not shown signs of slowing down. All in all, this market is good news for cow-calf producers. High-quality calves are bringing great prices!

The market for lambs has come down substantially from last summer’s highs, which saw lambs trading in the $300 range, drop into the $175-$185 range for similar weight lambs.

Video sales left in the summer:

1. July 18-20: Northern Livestock Video Summer Classic, Billings, Mont.
2. Aug. 1-5: Superior Livestock Auction Video Royal, Winnemucca, Nev.
3. Aug. 9-10: Cattle Country Video Oregon Trail Classic, Gering, Neb.
4. Aug. 15-16: Western Video Market Cheyenne, Cheyenne, Wyo.
5. Aug. 22-23: Northern Livestock Video Early Fall Preview, Billings, Mont.
6. Aug. 22-24: Superior Livestock Auction Bighorn Classic, Sheridan, Wyo.
7. Sept. 7-8: Superior Livestock Auction Labor Day Sale, Hudson Oaks, Texas
8. Sept. 13: Western Video Market Haythorn Sale, Ogallala, Neb.
9. Sept. 15: Cattle Country Video Sandhills Roundup, Torrington, Wyo.
10. Sept. 19: Northern Livestock Video Fall Classic, Billings, Mont.

Editor’s note: Regional Manager Kurt Kangas covers Region 10, including the states of Alaska, Montana and Wyoming. Click here to find the regional manager for your state.