Cash cattle prices lost another $2 per cwt. last week, a decline of $7 over two weeks. Coupled with higher input costs on feeder cattle, the decline feedyards with an average $22 per head loss last week.

Cash cattle prices stubbornly steady to $1 higher gave a slight boost to feedyard margins and left packer margins nearly unchanged last week.

Sharply lower cash cattle prices erased $100 per head from closeout profit margins last week and left cattle feeders re-evaluating ideas of a spring rally.

Based on cash sales of $108.77, cattle closeouts lost an average of $90 per head the week ending March 15.

Declining cash fed cattle prices erased profit margins for cattle feeders last week, and declining wholesale beef prices cut packer margins by 34%.

Sharply higher beef cutout values produced windfall profits for beef packers last week while cattle feeders saw closeouts with average losses about steady, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.