US cattle futures plunge as import fears grow - CME
Trump comments, tariff shifts spark market sell-off
28 October 2025
1 minute read
By: US cattle futures tumbled by expanded daily limits on Monday, extending a steep slide after President Donald Trump complained last week that prices were too high, reported Reuters.
Traders said they increasingly expected that Trump's administration will encourage more beef imports in a bid to offset tight US supplies and bring down record prices for consumers.
US beef prices soared this year as output declined and consumer demand remained strong.
Production suffered after a years-long drought in the western US burned up pasture lands used for grazing cattle and raised feeding costs, forcing ranchers to reduce their herds to the lowest levels in decades.
"This market is pricing in the idea that all of the 2026 US beef decline will be offset," said Rich Nelson, chief strategist for brokerage Allendale.
Last week, Trump urged cattle ranchers to lower prices, while infuriating them with a plan to quadruple low-tariff imports of Argentine beef. Ranchers said increased imports threaten their livelihoods and that Trump should support demand for US products.
Traders said they thought Trump may next dial back tariffs on Brazilian beef after a meeting on Sunday with Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Trump imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian products in August, slowing US imports of beef from the world's largest exporter.
"Early last week, we would have expected no removal of the tariffs against Brazilian products," Nelson said. "Now that's very possible."
This week, Mexico's agriculture minister is expected to travel to Washington with the aim of reaching an agreement on reopening the border to Mexican cattle. Since May, Washington has mostly blocked imports of Mexican cattle to keep out a flesh-eating parasite called New World screwworm, further tightening US supplies.
At the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), November feeder cattle futures finished down by the 13.75-cent limit at 338.450 cents per pound and touched the lowest price since August 15. CME December live cattle dropped 6.75 cents to close at 227.175 cents per pound and set the lowest price since August 4.
Other deferred contracts slid by the 10.75-cent limit before paring losses. The exchange temporarily widened daily trading limits after futures sank last week. The limits will remain expanded on Tuesday following Monday's sell-off.
