Cattle futures surge over US halt to Mexican cattle imports

U.S. cattle futures soared to record highs on Monday after Washington suspended cattle imports from Mexico over a flesh-eating parasite, which Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum denounced as unfair.

New World screwworm maggots burrow into open wounds on cattle and other animals, often killing their host within weeks. Though screwworm has been eradicated in the U.S. since 1966, the U.S. agriculture department warned there was a risk of re-introduction.

The import suspension threatened to increase U.S. beef prices by further tightening the supply of cattle, already at its lowest in decades.

All cattle futures contracts, traded in Chicago, hit lifetime highs following the halt.

"Cattle are on fire," said Dan Norcini, independent livestock analyst.

The parasite was detected in cattle herds in southern Mexico in November, prompting the USDA to temporarily stop imports.

On Sunday, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said she was suspending livestock imports again through the southern U.S. border due to the pest's "unacceptable northward advancement". She added that the suspension would be in place on a "month-by-month" basis.

Mexican Agriculture Minister Julio Berdegue said the measure would last 15 days, which Sheinbaum repeated in a regular press conference.