Cattle feeding margins improved $60 per head the week ending Feb. 12 and hog margins reported profits for the second consecutive week as lean hog prices rallied.
Average feedyard closeouts saw modest profits for cattle last week as cash prices improved. Hog finishing margins declined from near breakeven to a loss of $6 per head.
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.