Most eastern states cattle indicators hold steady

Cattle prices across the eastern states continued to stabilise this week, with most selling centres operating with a full field of regular buyers, and on the back of seasonal conditions, quality tended to be of a high standard for heavier cattle.

Numbers offered were very mixed between yards, with some of the larger selling centres, such as Gunnedah, Tamworth and Toowoomba, yarding significantly higher numbers, while Wagga and Dalby each had considerably fewer cattle.

The eastern states heavy steer indicator lifted 1¢ this week, to close Thursday’s markets at 300¢/kg lwt, while medium cows gained 1¢ to finish at 235¢/kg lwt.

Interestingly, while the quality tended to be better for finished cattle, young cattle were far more varied, and this was reflected in the Eastern Young Cattle Indicator (EYCI) being the only meter to lose ground this week. The benchmark measure for the eastern states lost 4.25¢ to finish the week at 644.5¢/kg cwt, yet reflective of the Australian cattle markets strength relative to previous years the indicator remains 55¢/kg above year-ago levels.

Restockers continue to be the driving force behind many of the market trends, especially in north Queensland, where Charters Towers this week reported all major processor buyers in attendance, but not all operating. At the same time, two feeder buyers and several central and western Queensland restockers were reportedly demonstrating their presence.

With only four full weeks left of saleyards operating, and feed conditions in the producers favour, it’s likely the market will remain buoyant through to the end of the year.