Trump: Cattle Ranchers 'Have to Get Their Prices Down'

President Donald Trump is working on getting the cost of beef down in America, calling on cattle ranchers to lower their prices as tariffs on imported beef might add to inflation in the sector.

"The Cattle Ranchers, who I love, don't understand that the only reason they are doing so well, for the first time in decades, is because I put Tariffs on cattle coming into the United States, including a 50% Tariff on Brazil," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

"If it weren't for me, they would be doing just as they've done for the past 20 years — Terrible! It would be nice if they would understand that, but they also have to get their prices down, because the consumer is a very big factor in my thinking, also!"

The news comes as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rose Tuesday for a second session as the market extended its recovery from Friday's steep sell-off, buoyed by firm beef prices and tight U.S. cattle supplies.

CME December live cattle settled up 1.775 cents Tuesday, or 0.73%, at 245.425 cents per pound, and November feeder cattle futures ended up 0.800 cent, or 0.21% at 373.475 cents per pound.

Both markets had plunged Friday after Trump said his administration was working to lower beef prices. However, analysts have been skeptical about Trump's weekend suggestion that the country import more beef from Argentina, which last year represented only about 2% of total U.S. beef imports.

Tight cattle supplies continue to underpin futures as the U.S. cattle herd has thinned to its smallest size since the 1950s.

In the wholesale market, choice cuts of beef were priced at $371.93 per hundredweight, up $2.75 from Monday and the highest reading in nearly a month, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Select cuts declined, falling 89 cents to $352.57 per cwt.

Beef packer margins remained deeply negative, with estimated losses of $216.25 per head on Tuesday, compared with losses of $196.60 per head a day earlier, according to livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.com.

CME lean hog futures ended higher. December hogs settled up 1.200 cents, or 1.46%, at 83.275 cents per pound and February ended up 1.025 cents at 85.750 cents.

Both futures contracts were priced below the CME's lean hog index, a two-day weighted average of cash prices, which was last down 0.54 cent at 95.58 cents per pound.

Reuters contributed to this report.

• US Ranchers Oppose More Argentine Beef Imports
• Sen. Fischer: 'Deep Concerns' Over Trump Plan to Import Argentine Beef