Grafton yarded 435 head of store cattle on Thursday with liveweight cows and calves selling to a dearer trend.
The market wasn't so kind to steers with 58 calves 200 to 300 kilograms averaging 198.6 cents a kilogram or $495 a head, compared to 249c/kg and $570/hd at last month's store sale.
The 51 heifer calves in the same weight range held their own, averaging 160.6c/kg or $385, compared to 173.3c/kg and $367 last month. However light weaners 100-200kg, sold to a softer trend, averaging $220/hd compared to $280 last month.
Cows with calves were slightly dearer on Thursday, averaging liveweight $661 ($628 last month) with both sales recording a top bid of $740.
Best bullock, a 775kg black baldy made 192c/kg or $1489 going to a processor.
Two-tooth Charolais cross steers from Gillets Ridge made $632 for 343kg at 184c/kg.
Milk-tooth Droughtmaster off Nymboida country, usually quite safe but not right now made $760 for 387kg at 196c/kg.
Angus cross steers, milks and twos, off Tullymorgan country made $618 for 308.8kg at 200c/kg.
Angus off Sportsmans Creek 284kg sold for the same price to make $568.
Shiny Angus steers out of the Everlasting Swamp that recently lost their feed to fire made $355 for 169kg at 210c/kg, going upriver to Baryulgil and onto the grain bin.
Vendors of the week Keys and McDonald, Tyringham, sold Angus steers, weaned and vaccinated, to $884 for 371kg at 238c/kg, topping their weight range for the sale.
Dean and Melissa Lawrence, James Creek via Maclean, have feed to hand, having destocked after the floods. Oats and vetch planted in May, part of a sugar cane rotation, got its roots down before the season began to dry and is now ready to take advantage of cheap stock.
They purchased Charolais heifers 108kg for 96c/kg or $104 and Angus 122.5kg for 146c/kg or $179.
Excellent first cross Brahman/Hereford heifers, bred by the DPI at Trenayre, sold to a top of $906 for 526kg at 172c/kg. They went to upper Coaldale country and will be put to a Santa Gertrudis bull.
Heifers to the butcher, via some backgrounding at Ulmarra, sold to 196c/kg for 235kg or $401.
Angus cows with calves by a Franklin bull made the top liveweight price of $740, going to the Robinson family at Coramba, who have 200 days of silage in storage, fed every other day as a blend with urea, molasses and rough crop.
"It'll fatten cows," said Eliezer Robinson.
Angus cows 625kg made $1050 at 168c/kg, going to a processor. Hereford cows 620kg made $1117 at 180c/kg.
The sale was conducted by Farrell McCrohon with agency principal David Farrell calling bids from the rostrum.
