Cattle futures took a hit on Friday, and honestly the weakness across the board caught some attention. Live cattle contracts dropped 90 cents to a buck fifty, though April was still holding up decently for the week. Feeder cattle got hit harder though - down 2.25 to 2.60 by close, which is notable. The CME Feeder Cattle Index had climbed to 377.37 earlier in the month, but that momentum didn't stick around.

What I found interesting was the export data. USDA reported only 14,694 MT of beef sold that week - a 5-week low. South Korea and Japan were the main buyers, which tracks with where most of our beef goes. Actual shipments came in at 13,362 MT, so there's a gap between sales and what's actually moving. You see that kind of disconnect sometimes when buyers are getting cautious.

The Commitment of Traders report showed managed money still adding to long positions in both live and feeder cattle futures, which suggests some traders aren't ready to call it quits just yet. But here's what caught my eye - Cattle on Feed numbers showed placements down 4.72% year-over-year in January. That's the kind of supply tightening that usually supports prices eventually, but it hasn't kicked in yet. Wholesale boxed beef prices were actually higher on Friday though, with Choice boxes up 1.53 to 366.70.

Federally inspected slaughter came in at 516,000 head for the week - up from the prior week but still below last year's levels. So we've got tighter supplies, moderate export demand, and futures that just couldn't hold support. Classic market setup where the fundamentals might not match the price action. Barchart's commodity data has been tracking this cattle market pretty closely, and these moves definitely warrant watching if you're following livestock futures.