USDA reports there were 12.0 million head of cattle on feed as of March 1, which was just 24,000 head higher than Reuters’ pre-report survey work signaled and up 1.6% from year-ago. Placement came in just 0.5 percentage points higher than expected at 98.1% of year-ago, while marketings at 97.6% of year ago fell just 0.5 points short of expectations. The range of trade guesses on both marketings and placements was wise, signaling a fair amount of uncertainty.
|
|
USDA (% of year-ago) |
Avg. Trade Estimate (% of year-ago) |
|
On Feed on March 1 |
101.6 |
101.4 |
|
Placements in February |
98.1 |
97.6 |
|
Marketings in February |
97.6 |
98.1 |
February cattle placements were lighter than year-ago for most weight categories. Exceptions included 7-weights that were steady with year-ago and 9-weights, which edged 4.2% higher. Lightweight placements were down 1.5% from year-ago, while 6-weights dropped 7.8%, 8-weights edged 0.5% lower, and heavyweights fell 8.3%.
The report should have limited impact on price action next week. The focus will be on cash bids and wholesale beef trade.
