Rabobank is predicting Canadian fed cattle prices will remain strong and improve seasonally.
The bank's latest quarterly beef report expects feeder cattle and calf prices to post more gains while breeding female prices are expected to have strong price increases.
The report says cattle supplies have tightened, driving prices up substantially compared to a year ago.
Feeder cattle supplies have been drained by aggressive shipments to the U-S, driving by high prices and the strong U-S dollar.
The bank says new heifer retention by farmers is placing additional demand on those supplies.
In the U-S, Rabobank expects feeder cattle prices to trade seasonally higher through the summer, peaking around 240 dollars per hundredweight in the August to September period.
It's forecasting fed cattle prices to find a summer low around 150 dollars per hundred, then move up to the 160 dollars per hundredweight mark later in the year.
As with the Canadian market, Rabobank says tight availability in the U-S is being further tightened by farmers aggressive heifer retention.
