The Morning Wire / South Dakota / Fri Oct 2, 2026

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South Dakota cattle market

The trading day in one page — Fri, Oct 2
● 3 barns reportedEvery figure as filed
← Oct 1Oct 2Oct 3 →

The market in a line

Fri, Oct 2
Choice cutout closed $2.60 lower at $374.19. 3 South Dakota barns reported 95 priced lots.

Feeder steers

South Dakota, week of Sep 28 USDA
Weighted across every reported lot, by weight class. Weekly rather than daily — one day's barns are too thin a base for a state figure. Watch the barn count: a weight class carried by one or two barns is a thin figure, not a market.
WeightPricevs prior weekHeadBarns
300-399 lb583.51/cwt$17.91 lower4044
400-499 lb511.39/cwt$6.58 lower1,2714
500-599 lb451.14/cwt$12.06 lower1,9974
600-699 lb397.81/cwt$13.62 lower2824
700-799 lb357.75/cwt$7.58 lower1285
800-899 lb348.17/cwt$3.61 lower1,3304

Barn by barn, 500–599 lb steers

Same day, same class USDA
Every barn that sold at least 20 head of this class on Fri, Oct 2, weighted by head. Spread of $1.01 between the top and bottom of 2 barns. An average moves with the cattle that showed up as much as with the buyers in the seats — a yard with better grade will average higher on the same demand. This is where the money landed, not a verdict on the barn.
BarnStateAverageHead
Ft. Pierre Livestock AuctionSD451.53/cwt1,155
St. Onge LivestockSD450.53/cwt741

Boxed beef

National · PM close · Oct 2 USDA
Choice $374.19, $2.60 lower. Select $354.49, $1.60 higher. The Choice–Select spread stands at $19.70. 119 loads traded.

Fed cattle

National · Negotiated cash, week to date USDA
24,298 head traded Sep 26–Oct 2.
RegionBasisPriceHead
Iowa-MinnesotaDressed Delivered348.452,602
Iowa-MinnesotaDressed FOB345.0040
Iowa-MinnesotaLive Delivered220.75283
Iowa-MinnesotaLive FOB219.387,538
NebraskaDressed Delivered346.108,344
NebraskaLive Delivered226.00700

At the South Dakota barns

USDA market reporters, as filed USDA

Compared to last week: Steers from 450 lbs to 499 lbs were 8.00 to 12.00 higher, steers from 500 lbs to 549 lbs were15.00 to 20.00 lower, steers from 550 lbs to 599 lbs were 10.00 to 12.00 higher, steers from 850 lbs to 899 lbs were 10.00 to 15.00 lower, steers from 900 lbs to 949 lbs were steady to…

Ft. Pierre Livestock Auction · South Dakota

Compared to last week: Steers 350-400lbs, sharply lower; 400-450lbs, 15.00 higher; 450-650lbs, 7.00-10.00 lower. Heifers 350-400lbs, sharply lower; 400-500lbs, 17-20.00 higher; 500-550lbs, unevenly steady on a light test from last weeks smaller count.

St. Onge Livestock · South Dakota

Compared to last week: best test on steers 900 to 1049 lbs steady to 3.00 lower. Heifers not well compared. A nice offering of yearlings today with the majority coming off grass. Good demand for loads and strings of yearlings. Flesh condition varied, from light to moderate plus.

Herreid Livestock Market · South Dakota

Cows and bulls

National direct, dressed USDA
ClassPriceDirectionHead
Breaker (75% lean)256.38/cwt$1.63 higher645
Boner (85% lean)267.20/cwt$2.01 higher1,979
Cutter (90% lean)271.64/cwt$0.98 higher3,366
Premium White288.69/cwt$2.24 higher1,597
Bull (92% lean)321.95/cwt$0.89 lower352

What published

See every report →
Every USDA report carried this date is listed in the archive.
Source: USDA AMS. Feeder prices and barn comment are South Dakota only; boxed beef, fed cattle and the cow market are national, because those markets are. Every figure is USDA's as filed, and the direction words — higher, lower, steady— follow the arithmetic rather than an opinion. Quoted comment is the work of USDA market reporters, credited to the sale it came from. This is RaisedBeef's rendering of USDA data, not a copy of USDA's document and not endorsed by USDA.