Arkansas cattle auction summary

The Arkansas weekly livestock auction summary indicated receipts of 7,432 head of cattle selling the week ending on Oct. 16, compared to 9,977 head the previous reporting period and 7,738 head a year ago, according to the USDA-Arkansas Department of Agriculture Market News, Little Rock, Arkansas.

The total included 6,143 head of feeder cattle, 895 head of slaughter cattle and 394 head of replacement cattle. A year ago, the total included 6,578 head of feeder cattle, 872 head of slaughter cattle and 288 head of replacement cattle. Compared to the close the previous week, the feeder and stocker steers were mostly selling $3 to $6 lower with instances of $10 to $12 lower. The feeder and stocker heifers were mostly selling $2 to $8 lower. The slaughter cows and bulls were steady to $2 lower. The supply included 83% feeder cattle with 35% steers, 0% were dairy steers, 43% were heifers and 22% were bulls; 12% was slaughter cattle with 77% cows and 23% were bulls; and 5% was replacement cattle with 17% stock cows, 54% were bred cows, 8% were bred heifers, 17% were cow-calf pairs, 2% were heifer pairs and 2% were bulls. The feeder cattle supply weighing over 600 pounds was 23%.