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AGHIC.!JLT.IJ:"l..AJ~_,N.f'J2S

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TBE. WEEK

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F~deral Reserve

Bank of ·Dallas

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s·p ot. cbtton p:rices on Tuesda·y ofthis week averaged. f~actj onally·:"ahove .
a week a~o:,heJ.0-market avei·age pr:i.ce for UidJJ ing 1)/1~-inch cotton wn.s ;4. 92
ceI)ts per pound, compared ·with 31.i.Bl cents a week earlier. The comparable price•
on· to~ ·pallas Cotton. Exchahge' Tuesday wa~-34 . 6.5 ce.nt.s,' vs. Jh.35 cents on the same
day la&t week. ..... - . .
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Cotton fut~res have sho~n even greater strenGth than spot prices <lliring ,
the past· week. October 1951 futures on the New Orleans · market closed ori Tuesday
of this .w~~k at J4.58 c'ents , 'compared with 3i~.2?° cents on Tuesday of ·Iast· week a.nd:
34.2J ' cents 2 weeks agoo
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The Government sought this week to strengthen cotton pr.Lees by offering· ·
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la:h~e-scale credits toforeign buyers of Aroericancotton'.--'fhis ac\ion is said
Ee b:;ised on the theory· that if the offer is taken, growers will be;"lefit from the·
eff§G.t ~f s.uch buyii.:ig on prices; v«hereas, if foreign buying is delayed or spr·e aa
ove_r : a longer pe:ciod of time, the price benef.'it ntight go only to those who bougbt
c.o .tt9n from growers and he2.d it for future sale ab::::-oad. · Loans to foreign buyers··· .
will be made by the Export--Import Bank from a ~noo million revolving fund established several years ago for the purFOSe of fjnancing export of American cotton:
The fund was not used last season because of the short 19)0 cotton crop.
The Rio Grande Valley is reporte.d.'to have ginned over L00,000 bales of
·cotton, vn th glliS now operatin'g aro md t.he'. '.C:toc.k. Local estimates place the Valley
C!,'OP at 625, 000 bales, compared . Yd.th JOO~ 'JOO bales ·last year .
Rapid and premature opehing ·of 'cotton extended int.a northern Blackland
counties of Texas lastweek under the extrem·e heat and· draughty conditions.
Deterioration of non-irrigated cotton continne'd, particularly in northern and northwes~~rn areas of the State.
I:r'd.gated · co+,ton in the High Pla:ins and west Te:zas ·
made good progress .
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G Il A I 1J S
"rain prices on the Fort Worth u:rain : ~::>:change mode very sli;;ht net
changEi!s du.cing "the past week. Prices are holcing at levels -,·;hich reflect supnort
price9 to producers. Heports. of grain purchases by foreign 1uyers anJ ne\':s from
Korea and o.ther points of international tensj_on caased only minor ri~ples on the
.grain markets of the country, anC: no· very si6nificant price development has
·occurred in a number of weeks.
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Tuesda:,r' s top grain r:-ices on the Fort Worth market: No. 1 hard '.'/heat, ·
~2:59-1/2; No. 2 whiteoats-,-~l.00; ·No. 2 Texas yellovr corn, ~?.00; and Io. 2
Texas white corn, $2.13 per b11shel. No . ?. yellovr milo is q1wted a~ 6S2.52 per 100
pounds.
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Rice mqrkets in Texas and Louisiana weakened during the first part of
the month asof:-_,rings of new-crop rke increased . In qouston, rnid-A11gust quotations shm• No. 1 Patna and Blue Bonnet at :)l0.50 to $10. 75 per 100 po mds.
The sorghum crop in the High Plains is heading aml still holdi..ng up
fairly well, although rain is badly needed. Ha""vest has uezun in Lhe Io i Rolling
Plains.

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LIVESTOCK
Prices on the Fort Wo-:-thlivestoc~< rr~artet heJd steadv d .iring t!1e pas":, 2
Tht, principal cha1e;e ·of tbe past week was an acJ.v·mce of $LOO in the p:cices

AGRICULTURAL NEWS OF THE WEEK
Number 86

Wednesday, August 22, 1951
Page 2

of slaughter calves, reaching $35.50 per cwt. Hogs were quoted at a top price of
$22.75 and slaughter steers at $36.00 per cwt.
Goat and kid prices on the San Antonio market fell $1.00-$1.50 last week.
Small butchers took Medium and Good 80-90 lb. shorn Angoras at $11.00 to $12.00
but only a few above $11.75 per cwt. The bulk of Common and Medium goats brought
$9.50 to $10.50.
The August issue of Michigan Farm Economics, published by the Extension
Service of Michigan State College, lists-the pros and cons of cattle feeding at
this time. The over-all conclusion of the report is-tnat9feeding beef catt'Ie ·.
during the next year is expected to be profitable. Here is hem Michigan State
College economists "size-up 11 the situation. ·Factors encouraging feeding: (1)
slaughter cattle prices at near record highs, (2) increased government defense;
expenditures, (3) continued large disposable incomes in the hands of consumers,
(4) strong demand for all meats, especially beef, and (5) adequate feed supplies.
Discouraging factors: (1) feeder cattle prices will be high, (2) the supply. of · .
beef will be slightly larger in 1951 than in 1950, (3) feed and supplements are
higher priced this year and other costs are also higher, (4) more severe gov.e rnment controls could wipe out the profits of an otherwise profitable feeding program, and (5) there will be more pork in 1951 than in 1950. The factors encouraging cattle feeding outweigh the other factors, sa~s the report.
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WOOL
Trading in the Boston wool market remained practically at a standstill
last week. Wool dealers studied--ca5'led reports from New Zealand, where sales opened
at prices sharply lower than the close for similar New Zealand wools at the London
sales last month, according to the PMA.
A small weight of average 12-months Texas wool was reported sold last
week at an estimated clean price of.$2.lO _per pouna.-In the opinion of USDA economists, as well as analysts for the International Wool Secretariat, higher wool prices are ahead. Since consumer incomes
are expected to continue to increase, demand for raw wool for civilian goods is
likely to strengthen as inventories are reduced to levels in line with retail
sale?, says a USDA report. Military requirements during the present fiscal year
again will be substantial. At the same time, the world supply of wool probably
will not differ greatly from last season. World production is expected to be
slightly above last year, and the carry-over in major exporting countries is
larger. These increases probably will just offset the reduction in Joint Organization (a British organization) holdings and in stocks in consuming countries. world
prices n.ext season probably will average somewhat higher than at present levels,
concludes the USDA. There is a word of caution, however, that government programs and policies could be important factors in the wool picture.
World Wool Digest, published by International Wool Secretariat and the
Wool Bureau, offers-an analysis of the wool supply and demand situation and concludes that the decline in consumption of wool in the first half of 1951 was due
to a shortage of wool rather than a slackening in demand for wool. World wool
consumption in the first half of 1951 "simply had to go down because supplies of
wool were smaller," says the report. A decline in demand for wool would be a
serious matter for the wool grower, but as yet there is no evidence for such a
view, the Digest concludes.
W. M. Pritchett
Agricultural Economist