Cattle futures surged early on Monday following supportive supply data last week. April feeders traded more than $6 higher to $366.50 per cwt. Prices pushed back to the top end of their range. April live cattle traded $3 higher to $240, also pushing to the top end of their range after struggling to break out last week.

Friday’s cattle inventory report confirmed that herd expansion is not occurring on a notable scale due to lower year-over-year beef cow numbers and slightly higher heifer retention.

The most active April live cattle futures were largely unchanged last week, having lost just 12 cents to close at $236.80 per cwt. Prices failed to reach the $240 level for a third week, adding technical pressure to the market on Thursday and Friday.

There were reports of cash trade in Kansas at $240 on Friday and bids in Texas at $238.

March feeders also lost momentum last week. Prices traded as high as $367.97 before finishing the week well below those lows at $360.27. Some of that weakness could have been due to the broad selling in the outside market, impacting oil, stocks, and metals.

There were also some unconfirmed rumors that sterile fly production in northern Mexico and along the border could be large enough to potentially allow cattle imports to resume in the spring.

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PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS. FUTURES TRADING INVOLVES SUBSTANTIAL RISK AND IS NOT SUITABLE FOR ALL INVESTORS.