US cattle placements in feedlots during March totalled 1.86 million, up 3% from the same period a year ago, but lower than pre-report estimate, according to USDA's monthly Cattle on Feed report issued Friday (Apr 23).

A Dow Jones survey of analysts pre-report indicated that, on average, they expected placement to be up 6.6% over the same period last year.

Furthermore, although the figure is higher year-over-year, there was an additional business day in 2010, and so cattle placements in March, in fact, were flat — not the large increase in placements that the industry expected after four months of lower placements, year-over-year, analysts said.

Cattle and calves on feed for slaughter market in the US for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totalled 10.8 million head on April 1, 2010. The inventory was 4% below that date a year ago. Marketings of fed cattle during March totalled 1.90 million, 4% above 2009.