The consensus for the April Cattle on Feed inventory level was for a slight increase, and the actual number came in at 102 percent of year ago levels at 12.1 million head. Both marketings and placements were expected to be lower with a typical wider disparity in the estimates for the placements. The higher overall total is due to lower actual marketings and higher actual placements. There were no indications that placements would be higher. As higher placements are the main surprise, the market response is likely to be somewhat muted, although still generally negative in the short run. At...

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