Total Yarding: 38,915
Agents penned record numbers with an extra 1,500 sheep and lambs penned. The quality was noticeably plainer than last week with a large portion lacking finish and showing dry skins across the lamb pens. There was, however, a good number of heavy sheep on offer suiting the export processors. The restocker and feedlot buyers were again very active today stepping into the large offering of store condition lambs. All the regular field of buyers were present operating in a slightly softer market across all weights and grades.
Trade weight new season lambs are starting to reduce in numbers showing in this week’s yarding. Light and medium trade, 18-22kg were $6 to $8 easier selling from $130 to $165 with the heavy trade making from $162 to $168, averaging 691c/kg cwt, easing $8/head. Heavy lambs to the domestic and export buyers also eased $8, selling from $171 to $185/head. The few pens offered weighing over 26kg suiting the export processors sold from $184 and $189/head to average 680c/kg cwt.
Light weight lambs to the processors eased $3 to $5 with the 12-18kg lambs selling from $80 to $136/head. Store lambs were very well supplied and sold in a softer market, up to $6 easier in places with the lighter weights returning to the paddock making from $95 to $157/head. Feedlot buyers paid from $98 to $120/head for 14-18kg lambs and the better lambs weighing between 18-24kg were made $130 and $163 easing up to $10/head.
Heavy shorn lambs sold from $175 to $186/head. Overall it was a mixed quality yarding of mutton selling in a softer market easing $2/head for heavy mutton. Heavy cross bred ewes made from $148 to $192, averaging 571c/kg cwt and 4 score merino ewes reached $170/head. Heavy wethers sold to $220, easing $8/head to average 581c/kg cwt. Trade and light sheep sold from $90 to $153, easing up to $3/head.
Market Report: MLA’s National Livestock Reporting Service.
Photo: Ian Culley sold 157 Merino Wethers with Elders to a sale top of $220ph.
Click here to download the full SELX Market Report – Prime Sheep and Lamb sale – 4 December 2019.