USDA released its Cattle on Feed report today. The inventory of cattle in feedlots with a capacity of 1,000 head or more was 12.1 million head, up from February 2020 and in-line with pre-report expectations, but placements came in higher and marketings came in lower than expected. This is the second largest on-feed inventory for February since records started in 1996.

January placements and marketings were impacted by the calendar as there were two fewer working days in 2021 than in January 2020, but even taking that into account, the industry pre-report expectations were missed on the bearish side of both placements and marketings. Average daily marketings were 95,895 based on 19 work days, but Saturday kills in January were up helping...