Numbers lift at Muchea

Muchea sheep numbers lifted week-on-week to 13,240, with the 2800 new-season lambs penned and stronger ewe numbers accounting for most of the increase.

Quality was generally good across the lamb yarding, and ewe weight and condition improved.

Prices were mixed, with buyers selective, particularly on lambs at lower average prices, however most other categories were fully firm.

Lightweight new season lambs to processors eased in price and sold from $35 to $75.50/head.

Trade-weight lambs sold between $65 and $100/head to be $6 to $8/head cheaper on average.

Old season lambs were mostly $4 to $8/head cheaper, with trade weights selling from $60 to $87/head.

Merino trade weight lambs sold between $52 and $70/head for the majority, to be back $4/head.

Merino ewe prices held firm, with price rises related to weight improvement.

Heavyweight ewes made from $52 to $70/head to be fully firm.

Medium weight ewes sold from $40 to $64.50/head, also firm week-on-week.

The lighter conditioned and lightweight ewes were in limited supply and sold at marginally dearer prices for the majority.

Wether prices were influenced by quality with very limited good drafts.

The best of the export drafts sold from $55 to $66/head, with medium-weight drafts making between $50 to $59/head.

Feeders and restockers again purchased the majority of wethers at easier prices, with feeders paying mostly $40 to $68/head and restockers operating on lighter conditioned drafts paid from $35 to $63.50/head.

Ram lambs sold to a top of $88/head.

Older rams were easier and sold between $5 and $55/head.

Muchea cattle numbers contracted slightly to 1298, with growing conditions excellent across most production areas.

Quality continued to improve with a better supply of trade cattle available and both local and pastoral store supplies of better quality overall.

Pastoral supplies were dominant, however lower than last week.

Heifer, cow and bull supplies from pastoral regions were solid.

Prices varied, however overall there was stronger demand across most categories, with all buyers active.

Trade cattle sales remained firm with steers from 169c to 215c/kg and heifers from 165c to 213c/kg for C-muscled drafts.

Pastoral yearling steers sold from 114c to 148c/kg to be around 5c/kg cheaper.

Pastoral heifers improved 6c to 9c/kg, with most sales from 110c to 140c/kg, due to strong competition and improved quality.

Local feeder drafts varied with light weight steer drafts from 175c to 227c/kg, up strongly on improved quality.

Medium and heavyweight feeder steers were generally cheaper.

Local heifer feeder sales slipped with better drafts from 160c to 168c/kg, back by up to 16c/kg.

Grown steer prices were dearer by up to 12c/kg.

Pastoral prices ranged from 134c to 154c/kg for better conditioned drafts and 98c to 141c/kg for plain supplies. Grown heifer sales slipped on quality with the best drafts to 154c/kg.

Cow prices lifted across all categories with lighter conditioned and weight drafts up 6c to 12c/kg. Medium weight cows made from 112c to 140c/kg, to be mostly 6c to 7c/kg dearer.

Heavy cows were also dearer with prices from 125c to 141c/kg for the majority.