Steer prices tracked toward the heady rates of higher January markets at Ballarat’s annual grown steer and weaner sale on Friday.
Offering an outstanding quality yarding of 4150, an exceptionally large and eager field of processor, feeder and restocker buyers contested the market along with the wild card entry of a new WA-based cattle production company, with links to the Live Export trade that has taken up permanent residence in the Western District which claimed just over 10 percent of the penning.
Due to the higher than expected returns, which saw heavy steers make to $1900 a head and average 335c/kg and feeder weights, $1350 to $1580 and average 361 cents, a number of the industry’s heavy hitters battled fill their required loads and some even to land a punch.
The yarding, which was broadly claimed as one of the best ever assembled at Ballarat, sold its first 200 pens, which were prominently black but with a higher than normal splash of colour, at prices that rarely fell below $1300 a head. And then on these odd occasions all sales came with a hefty $4/kg price tag which gravitated higher as the weights dropped and lighter steer sales traded in the $1150- $1250/head price range.
