A whisper of something in the wind brought out hundreds more head of cattle to be yarded for Thursday's monthly store sale at Grafton - 1745 in total - and vendors weren't disappointed with the first two pens of four tooth Angus, averaging 458.35 kilograms selling for 448.2 cents a kilogram or $2054, going north of the border onto feed.
Producer Jason Townsend, Coldstream, bought the steers as yearlings 12 months ago and celebrated the rising market.
Steers to 400kg, 936 head, averaged 581.1 cents a kilogram or $1369.59 and reached a top of 744.2c/kg and $1880.99.
Heifers to 540kg, 515 head, averaged 536.7c/kg or $1193.78 and reached a top of 710.2c/kg and $1843.19.
The mood of the sale continued as local restockers competed strongly for bullocks, with Grafton one of the few places the product is marketed for sale.
Peter Lake and Kim McKenna, PK Rural at Gilletts Ridge, bought Speckle Park yearling steers at the Grafton saleyards and sold them on Thursday as four tooth, 528.3kg for 394.2c/kg or $2082 going to bullock finisher Tracey Lawson, Grafton, who will fatten them on clover and kikuyu growing shin-high before consigning them to Teys.
"You can finish them if you've got feed. I hope to sell them by Christmas and in the meantime they're nice to look at. It's an aesthetic thing."
PK Rural also sold Charolais steers from Brahman/Hereford cows bought as weaners off the Moorhead family's Baryulgil Pastoral and sold them on Thursday as milk tooth, 456.7kg for 444.2c/kg or $2028.51, going to Bindaree Beef. In the end they bought back in, paying $1457.13 for Droughtmaster steers 248.6kg at 586.2c/kg bred by Peter and Glenda Ballard, Copmanhurst.
Michelle and Robert Page, Heifer Station sold 250kg Charolais cross weaner steers to the same cross selling to Alexander Downs feedlot at Merriwa for 626c/kg or 1567. "This sale is our highest ever average for weaner steers - 239kg at 625c/kg or $1496," said Mr Page, whose family operation donated $5 a head to helpline provider Lifeline, with the draft contributing $435 to the charity. "I thought I'd give something back," said Mr Page.
Mervyn Ide, Brooklana, sold black baldy steers 352.5c/kg for 470c/kg or $1656 going to Queensland through Grant Daniel Long.
Charlie Mifsud, Southgate, sold a large pen of 16 Charolais cross steers bought out of Grafton and Casino saleyards which sold for 446.2c/kg at 424.7kg or $1894.96.
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