Cattle Market Sees a Slight Dip Ahead of Christmas
As the festive season approached, the cattle market experienced a modest downturn. This week, cattle yardings decreased by 20,615, totalling 77,881 head.
Despite this significant week-on-week reduction, it marked the second-largest week of the year in terms of yardings. The decline in buyers and processors attending sales, a typical trend around Christmas, contributed to this change.
The restocker yearling steer indicator fell by 24p to 310p/kg liveweight (lwt). This price drop was consistent across all states, attributed to an increase in yardings offering more choices to buyers. Other cattle market indicators also showed a downward trend, albeit at varying rates.
Notably, the processor cow indicator, which decreased by 13p to 204p/kg lwt, was the least affected.
Despite the week’s easing conditions, cattle prices remained significantly higher than the lows observed in October. Well-finished cattle continued to attract a premium in the market.
Sheep and Lambs Market Overview
The lamb market demonstrated strength over the past week. Yardings increased by 23,109 to 470,177 head, the highest weekly figure since November 2019. Lamb yardings, in particular, saw a substantial rise of 47,311 from the previous week to 341,579 head, the highest since November 2017.
The heavy lamb indicator rose by 52p to 678p/kg carcase weight (cwt). At CVLX Ballarat, high-quality lamb lines spurred strong bidding, pushing prices up by 96p to 745p/kg cwt, the highest since April.
However, at Wagga, despite quality yarding, prices for heavy lambs destined for export fell by 69p to 467p/kg cwt, likely due to the seasonal plant shutdowns. Excluding Wagga, all other sales reported increases in heavy lamb prices.
Slaughter Figures for the Week Ending 8 December
Cattle slaughter numbers showed a slight decrease of 2%, dropping by 3,063 to 120,887 head. The decline was more pronounced in Queensland, NSW, and South Australia, where the combined slaughter fell by 3,570 head. Other states saw a marginal increase in slaughter numbers.
In contrast, the combined lamb and sheep slaughter figures rose by 768 to 673,406 head. Lamb slaughter increased by 15,956 to 482,373 head, while sheep slaughter decreased by 15,188 to 191,033 head. Notably, NSW reported an 18% increase in lamb slaughter, amounting to 18,508 more heads, totalling 120,979 for the week.
