Yarding: 461 Change: 54
MOUNT GAMBIER CATTLE
Wednesday, September 7
Cattle numbers lifted slightly as agents yarded 461 – an increase of 54 head.
The usual buying group was present for a mixed quality early spring offering.
The trade cattle run did have some well presented young and grown heifers with some plainer pens.
Most of the cows were well covered and there was a good quality line up of grown steers.
Prices in the market varied in places as the grown steers mostly sold from 10c to 15c/kg cheaper, the limited selection of younger cattle did fluctuate in a few places to be firm and the beef cows sold close to equal although not reaching last weeks top price.
Grown heifers to feeders sold dearer due to quality with other sales close to unchanged.
The sale consisted of 164 grown steers, 120 trade run cattle, 165 cows and 7 bulls.
The well bred good quality yearling steers mainly went onto feed and sold from 520c to 567c with a lighter weight sale reaching 608c/kg.
A couple of plainer yearling steer sales made from 355c to 360c/kg.
Yearling heifers to the processors made from 510c to 545c, feeders and the restockers paid from 434c to 540c/kg for their suitable heifers.
Grown steers mostly went to feeders as they paid from 452c to 525c and a crossbred manufacturing steer sold for 398c/kg.
Processors purchased grown heifers from 380c to 462c, feeders paid from 505c up to 530c for well bred heifers and they also purchased plainer heifers from 404c to 448c/kg.
Restockers were also active paying from 336c to 390c/kg.
The cow market remained consistent as the heavy cows sold from 390c to 425c and the few leaner cow sales made from 360c to 395c/kg.
Restockers were active on a few pens of lighter cows and paid from 320c to 369c/kg.
The beef bulls made from 310c to 350c/kg selling to a dearer trend.
Yarding: 567 Change: -379
NARACOORTE CATTLE
Tuesday, September 6
Cattle numbers decreased at Naracoorte to 567, which was 379 head less.
Quality was from average to very good.
All the regular buyers attended and operated in an firm to dearer market on average, although there was a few variations depending on demand and quality at times.
The sale did have a good portion well coved cows, good quality grown heifers and more grown steers were penned suiting both processors and feeders as they competed against each other in places.
A mixed and smaller selection of younger cattle was also offered compared with last week.
The well presented heavy cows sold from unchanged to 5c/kg dearer.
Prices for the grown and younger cattle were mainly from equal to 10c/kg stronger with some isolated sales in the grown steers up further and the bulls also sold to a dearer trend.
The market consisted of approximately 22 bulls, 437 trade cattle and 90 cows.
Yearling steers to the trade made from 470c to 548c with the feeders paying from 465c to 565c/kg.
Yearling heifers to the processors sold from 500c to 540c, plainer heifers made 425c to 518c with the feeders again active as they paid from 388c to 535c/kg.
The improved selection of grown steers to the processors mainly sold from 485c to 530c to be much stronger as the majority went to the restockers and feeders from 422c to 528c, reaching a top of 549c/kg for a pen of 16 steers weighing approximately 580kg liveweight.
Good grown heifers with cover made from 455c to 491c, secondary grown heifers sold from 355c to 470c and the feeders were busy paying from mostly 420c to 505c and up to 512c/kg.
Heavy beef cows made from 402c to 422c, a few leaner cows sold from 300c to 390c and the heavy beef bulls sold from mainly from 296c to 382c/kg.
Yarding: 2795 Change: 986 Lamb: 1313 Change: 28 Sheep: 1482 Change: 958
NARACOORTE SHEEP AND LAMB
Tuesday, September 6
Naracoorte agents yarded a similar sized offering of 1313 lambs.
Quality was very mixed and varied from plain to good.
A few heavy weight pens were sold along with a good selection of heavy trade and medium trade weights with some cover.
The regular buyers attended and operated with more demand in a dearer market overall.
Prices lifted mostly from $5 to $10 for light trade weight lambs, medium trade weight lambs were from $7 to $15 dearer with heavy lambs from $10 to $20/head stronger on last week.
Restockers purchased light Merino ewes in wool for $46 and $70 and light lambs for $72/head.
Light Merino lambs made from $82 to $90 with a medium weight pen reaching $136/head.
Light weight lambs to the processors made from $86 to $114/head as they averaged between 570c and 600c/kg cwt.
Light trade weight lambs sold from $118 to $131/head to average 630c/kg cwt.
The medium trade weight lambs made from $144 to $164 and the heavy trade weight lambs sold from $170 to $190/head as they averaged from 720c to 750c/kg cwt.
Heavy lambs from 25 to 26kg cwt sold from $180 to $198 and the extra heavy lambs made from $202 to $226 reaching a top of $235/head to also average from 720c to 750c/kg cwt.
Heavy hoggets sold from $125 to $149/head.
Sheep numbers lifted to 1482, which was 958 head more.
Quality was from average to good with more heavier mutton offered and less lighter plainer sheep.
Prices improved from $10 to $15 for the medium weight mutton with the heavy sheep averaging from $3 to $10/head dearer.
Light to medium weight mutton sold from $95 to $133, heavy weight crossbred ewes sold from $128 to $155, Merino ewes made from $140 to $174/head and the extra heavy sheep sold mainly from $160 to $180/head.
A couple of very heavy crossbred wethers made to $240/head.
Mutton costs for the medium sheep varied from 460c to 540c with the heavy sheep averaging from 540c to 580c/kg cwt.
The best of the rams sold from $100 to $110/head.
