Feedlot Placements Higher than Expected

Feedlot placements were up 14 percent in November this year when compared to last year according to the latest numbers from the USDA.

Livestock Analyst Shayle Shagam says that is higher than many analysts expected and that is the highest November placement since at least 1996 but total cattle inventory is up eight percent in the U.S.

“There are a lot of animals out there to be placed. Some of these may be heifers. If we look at heifer slaughter it has been running above a year earlier since around the middle of the year.”

What could this tell us about cow-calf operators? Shagam says there’s a good indication that, “They’re moving more towards a steady state in terms of not really expanding dramatically, but not contracting.”

And the large numbers could result in some downward pressure being put on prices in the market place.