Imported US beef market continues to slide

Imported US beef prices continued to slide this week, as many end users were uncertain of market direction now the 85% Australian beef quota threshold has been triggered.

After the threshold was reached (31 August), there are 10 days for Australian exporters that have quota available to transfer/trade their share, causing somewhat of a holding pattern in trade.

This week, imported 90CL beef prices averaged 233.5US¢/lb, down 3.5¢ from last week (727.1A¢/kg, down 1.1A¢/kg).

From an Australian cattle market point of view, while the quota constraints may place some downward pressure on the market over the coming weeks, the reduced weekly cattle slaughter and A$ dipping to 70US¢ – a six year low – is likely to alleviate some of the pressure. Additionally, grinding beef supplies in the US remain limited.