Ballarat steers to 440c/kg, heifers to 414c/kg
Buying orders continued to stoke prices as Ballarat steers sold to 440c/kg and heifers to 414c/kg.
Buying orders continued to flood into store sales as prices pushed into uncharted waters at Ballarat - particularly for heifers.
At the Nutrien Livestock Ballarat 47th annual premier weaner sale the complete yarding of 4508 cattle averaged $1392 a head.
The steer portion comprised 3015 head and averaged $1482 while the heifer yarding of 1474 averaged $1170.
Of the first 100 pens with steers weighing 380 to 480kg prices seldom dropped below 400c/kg with the majority selling between 400c and 425c/kg with a top of 434c.
As the steer weights dropped to the 320 to 380kg range prices stayed around the 410c to 430c/kg with a peak of 440c/kg.
Hereford steers sold in a range of 370c/kg to a top of 399c.
In the heifers most Angus heifers sold from 340c to 390c/kg with a top of 414c/kg.
Estimates on some lighter lines of unweighed steers were quoted at more than 500c/kg and heifers at just under that level.
The open auction steer section was dominated by a draft of 183 sold account Carngham Station.
These sold in six lines with the top 26 selling to $1330, the balance sold in a band between $1130 and $1310.
Nutrien auctioneer Xavier Shanahan said numbers crept up a bit on the back of the recent sales.
Mr Shanahan said that a soon as the cattle came back to the ideal feeder weights - 400 to 500kg - they were 30-40kg lighter than the lead steers but made the same dollars per head.
The bulk of the heavy weights went to Gippsland while feedlotters came in as weights dropped below 500kg.
He said heifer prices were extremely strong and should continue to attract a premium.
