Prime cattle markets have started the new year with tight supply and a surge in prices.
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Wodonga's prime market on Tuesday was quoted as 50 cents a kilogram (liveweight) dearer, which was quite an accomplishment considering the thousands of weaner cattle to have passed through that centre last week.
Sales at Carcoar, Wagga Wagga, Gunnedah, Inverell and Tamworth all recorded significant dips in supply but prices at least 20c/kg higher for young cattle.
While indicator prices from Meat and Livestock Australia won't include a full suite of sales until later this week, signals suggest the Eastern Young Cattle Indicator (EYCI) could lift to somewhere about the 590c/kg to 600c/kg (carcase weight) level.
That's about 40c/kg higher than where markets finished last year.
Meanwhile, the properly weaned cattle attracted premiums during the week-long Wodonga weaner sales last week.
Elders agent Oliver Mason, Albury, said anything vendors could do to make it easier for the next person in the chain made a difference.
"To give yourself every opportunity to have the strongest competition on your own stock, you need to prepare them the best you can for the next person in line, whether that be a lot feeder or backgrounder," he said.
Mr Mason said it was hard to put a figure on it, but there was a premium for weaned cattle in the realm of about $100 to $150 a head.
"From an auctioneering perspective, there is three, four or five people bidding away on the heavy unweaned calves.
"Then you get to a pen of weaned cattle and there is 10 or 11 people standing there ready to buy them because clearly the specs for some of these commission buyers are a weight spec and they want them weaned."
Mr Mason said heavier cattle attracted stronger cents a kilogram prices, which traditionally had not always been the case, with many of these heading to northern NSW and southern Queensland.
"The cattle that are well weaned, that are 330kg or 340kg, that are ready to go straight onto a crop or into a feeder, those cattle have been well sought after," he said.
Mr Mason said while currently there was not a premium for having EU accreditation, it was worth those vendors staying in the program.
"There has been some cattle stay in the EU program which we haven't seen for some time," he said.
"I think if you're in it, you should stay the course because I believe there's going to be some more opportunity to market beef in the EU coming forward.
"Once it settles down over there, the quotas are going to increase and you need to be prepared - you can't just click your fingers and be EU overnight."
