Information is power

MLA’s Market Information Service is charged with collecting and distributing accurate, timely and independent market information on a daily basis for the red meat industry. This information allows participants to monitor market trends and have confidence when making strategic livestock marketing decisions.

The market information team, which includes the National Livestock Reporting Service (NLRS), comprises a number of analysts based in the North Sydney head office, as well as 26 Livestock Market Officers (LMOs) who operate from regional saleyards. Through its LMO network, the NLRS independently collects market data from 37 major cattle selling centres across Australia. Market analysts then use this data, in conjunction with a range industry statistics, to commentate on relevant trends and forecasts.

The MLA Market Information team produces a large suite of regular publications, including:

• Meat & Livestock Weekly newsletter (weekly) - the very latest market news, analysis and trends for livestock, domestic and key export markets in an easy-to-read and concise online format.
• Australian cattle industry projections (quarterly) - a must-have for beef industry participants interested in the projections for the cattle market, including supply and demand forecasts. This report also examines the likely threats and opportunities facing the industry
• NLRS individual saleyard reports (daily) - detailed reporting of prices and yardings for individual stock categories sold at major cattle sales. Includes ‘on the ground’ commentary explaining local market trends. To ensure that a valid data sample is collected at each sale, LMOs record at least 70% of the total stock offered at each sale.
• Over-the-hooks (OTH) reports (weekly) - the latest indicative OTH trends generated every Monday and sourced directly from processors, agents and producers.
• Slaughter reports (weekly) - provides slaughter totals for cattle, sheep, lambs, pigs and goats generated each Monday from data collected from registered abattoirs in each state.
• NLRS livestock indicators (daily) - the latest price indicators from the eastern states on a daily basis. All indicators are seven-day rolling averages derived from NLRS reported saleyards and include the trade steer, medium steer, heavy steer, medium cow, feeder steer and Eastern Young Cattle Indicator (EYCI). The EYCI is a seven-day rolling price average of young cattle saleyards across Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. It is designed to be applicable to a wide range of cattle and beef industry participants, and has sufficient diversity to provide a robust indicator of trends in the physical cattle market.
• Feeder report (weekly) - the latest rates for sales directly to lotfeeders. Generated each week from information sourced from lotfeeders, agents, alliance groups and producers.
• Lotfeeding brief (quarterly) - the results from each ALFA/MLA lotfeeding survey.
• LiveLink (monthly) - detailed statistics on trends in the livestock export industry.

How to access information

All market information publications are freely available from theMLA website, the MLA Market Information App, or through a personal subscription service which delivers the publications you require directly to your inbox.

Read more about the available MLA market information reports and subscribe in this brochure. As well as standard reports, MLA’s analysts can also supply tailored data to meet the specific needs of an organisation or individual.

Further information:

To stay informed, contact MLA’s Market Information team and subscribe today E: marketinfo@mla.com.au or T: 02 9463 9372