Brazil beef trade seasonably slow in October - Cepea
Brazilian feeder cattle prices higher
9 November 2023
2 minute read
By: October Brazilian feeder cattle prices were higher compared to the month before, according to a recent market report from Cepea. This scenario is related to the supply adjustment throughout the chain and the good performance of beef exports.
The pace of trades in the spot market in Brazil, however, was slow in October – which is typical in this period. Beef sales were still moving at a slow pace and the delivery window at the industry was long at the end of the month.
The CEPEA/B3 Index for fed cattle (São Paulo State) closed at BRL 237.50/arroba on October 31, moving up 0.57% in the accumulated of October. The monthly average, in turn, was BRL 237.83, for an increase of 12.07% more than in September/23, but 15% less compared to October/22, in real terms (the monthly averages were deflated by IGP-DI September/23).
The price rise from September to October is a recovery, since values of ready-to-slaughter animals had been presenting monthly decreases in this second semester – the downward trend, in turn, was a result of the higher supply of animals and high stocks in both the wholesale and retail markets.
For beef carcass traded in the wholesale market of the Greater São Paulo, average prices increased 2% in October, closing at BRL 16.66 per kilo on October 31 – this product was traded at around BRL 17/kg in the middle of the month, a level that had not been observed since July this year. In October, values averaged BRL 16.79/kg, for an increase of 7.2% compared to that in September/23, but downing 8.9% in relation to October/22, in real terms.
It is worth noting that beef price drops in one year is less intense than that verified for fed cattle quotations, which can result in higher margins for players in the industry.
(BRL 1 = USD$ 0.20)
