There was a very small yarding of cattle at Wodonga on Thursday, with around 1000 head in the draft. What was penned sold to a dearer market again, lighter steers attracting close to 700 cents a kilogram.
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Speaking to Northern Victoria Livestock Exchange after the sale, Peter Ruaro Livestock agent Scott Campbell said the numbers weren't out there at the moment.
"I think people are starting the realise that now, if they've got empty paddocks and the feed's growing, they're not making any money out of it," Mr Campbell said.
The small run of cows and calves attracted up to $3025 a unit for five, five- to six-year-old Limousin-cross cows, pregnancy-tested-in-calf, with four-month-old calves. They were offered by the Hedger family of Culcairn.
The same vendor sold three PTIC Limousin cows, weighing an average 765kg for $2420.
Mr Campbell said there wasn't many grown steers there but the heavy weaner steers were making about 420c/kg.
While, steers weighing around 320kg were selling around the 500c/kg mark.
"There's not a heaps of them in there but there's just huge demand for those cattle at the moment, and mostly just locals," Mr Campbell said.
The top pen of steers were five Herefords weighing 491kg, offered by Peter Griffin, which sold for $1805.
In the weaners, GT and JH Hillier, Corryong, Vic sold 20 11-month-old Angus steers, weighing 389kg, for $1655. A second run of 17 weighing 316kg made $1540.
KL Pearson, Jarvis Creek, Vic offered 13 Angus-cross steers, seven- to eight-months-old, weighing 278kg for $1495, making 538c/kg.
In the very light section, competition was fierce, three Angus steers from Kincardine Pastoral, Holbrook weighing just 105kg, sold for $730, making 695c/kg.
Mr Campbell said everybody was trying to buy the light end of cattle now.
"People are trying to buy for a dollars per head side of thing now and the cents per kilogram have gone out the window," Mr Campbell said.
A highlight of the heifer section was the run of Charolais-cross offered by Bernie Hynes, Yackandandah, Vic.
A pen of 17 Charolais cross steers 14- to 16-months-old, weighing 448kg, sold for $1795, while a second run of nine, 399kg, made $1640.
DJ and SJ White, Swanpool sold a pen of 22 12-month-old Angus-cross heifers weighing 354kg for $1440.
Mr Campbell said he expected there would be some more weaners come through from October.
"It just seems to find another level at the moment, you think it's leveled out ... but it grows another bit in strength again and people stand up and buy them," he said.
The sale was interfaced with StockLive and conducted by Corcoran Parker, Brian Unthank Rural, Schubert Boers and Peter Ruaro.