# Cattle Economics: Cattle Inventory Influences Market Outlook | UT Beef & Forage Center

> The UT Beef & Forage Center analysis of the January 1, 2023 cattle inventory report notes beef cow numbers fell one million head to 28.9 million, the lowest since 1962. Beef heifers held for replacement were about 5.2 million head, nearly 320,000 lower year over year, and the 2022 calf crop declined two percent.

- Date: 2023-03-05 · published 2023-03-05T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: report · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/37003-cattle-economics-cattle-inventory-influences-market-outlook-ut-beef-and-forage
- Commodities: [Live Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/LCATTLE.md), [Feeder Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/FCATTLE.md)

## Why it matters

A shrinking beef herd and fewer replacement heifers point to tighter cattle supplies and sustained high cattle prices, which support feeder and live cattle values for feedlot buyers.

## Read by commodity

- FCATTLE: bullish ▲
- LCATTLE: bullish ▲

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LCATTLE | 2019-10-30 | [Inventory Insights \| Ohio BEEF Cattle Letter](https://feedsoft.ai/events/56703-inventory-insights-ohio-beef-cattle-letter.md) | +4.0% | +5.8% |
| LCATTLE | 2026-02-02 | [How Bullish is the Cattle Inventory Report for the Cattle Market? - AgWeb](https://feedsoft.ai/events/20729-how-bullish-is-the-cattle-inventory-report-for-the-cattle-market-agweb.md) | +1.4% | +4.3% |
| LCATTLE | 2022-02-01 | [USDA Beef/Cattle Outlook: February 2022 Cattle Range](https://feedsoft.ai/events/42657-usda-beef-cattle-outlook-february-2022-cattle-range.md) | +1.8% | +2.6% |
| LCATTLE | 2019-08-21 | [Kentucky Beef Cattle Market Update \| Ohio BEEF Cattle Letter](https://feedsoft.ai/events/57532-kentucky-beef-cattle-market-update-ohio-beef-cattle-letter.md) | +1.6% | -4.3% |
| LCATTLE | 2023-01-04 | [Cattle Markets in 2023 and Cattle on Feed Update \| Ohio BEEF Cattle Letter](https://feedsoft.ai/events/37918-cattle-markets-in-2023-and-cattle-on-feed-update-ohio-beef-cattle-letter.md) | +0.3% | -0.2% |
| FCATTLE | 2019-10-30 | [Inventory Insights \| Ohio BEEF Cattle Letter](https://feedsoft.ai/events/56703-inventory-insights-ohio-beef-cattle-letter.md) | +1.7% | -2.6% |
| FCATTLE | 2026-02-02 | [How Bullish is the Cattle Inventory Report for the Cattle Market? - AgWeb](https://feedsoft.ai/events/20729-how-bullish-is-the-cattle-inventory-report-for-the-cattle-market-agweb.md) | +2.0% | -0.8% |
| FCATTLE | 2022-02-01 | [USDA Beef/Cattle Outlook: February 2022 Cattle Range](https://feedsoft.ai/events/42657-usda-beef-cattle-outlook-february-2022-cattle-range.md) | +1.2% | -4.1% |

## Sources

- utbeef.tennessee.edu: https://utbeef.tennessee.edu/cattle-economics-cattle-inventory-influences-market-outlook/

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.