Cattle on feed inventories continue to remain above year-earlier levels, and placements continue to reflect the increasing cattle inventory. The number of cattle on feed in feedlots with a capacity of 1,000 head or greater on Nov. 1, 2017, was 6 percent above Nov. 1, 2016, and 5 percent above Nov. 1, 2015.

The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its annual Cattle Report Jan. 31, 2017, which showed higher inventory numbers in many categories for the third consecutive year.

Commercial beef production in 2016 is estimated about 6 percent above that of 2015. This is due to a combination of increased slaughter and slightly higher dressed weights.

October cattle prices were lower relative to September and the previous year. Weekly average fed cattle prices declined during the month, averaging about $100 per hundredweight compared to $131 in 2015.

The September Cattle on Feed report released by the USDA estimated cattle in feedlots with a capacity of 1,000-plus head totaled 10.1 million head, up 1 percent from the previous year. Placements of cattle on feed during August totaled 1.88 million head, up 15 percent from the same period last year.