11 Jul 2025
Australian Livestock Markets Show Mixed Trends
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Australian Livestock Markets Show Mixed Trends as Lamb Prices Hit Records
July 11, 2025 | Meatex News Desk
Australia’s cattle and sheep markets delivered a mixed performance this week, with lamb prices reaching new highs while cattle indicators softened slightly, according to the latest report from Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA)
Cattle Market Highlights
- Cattle yardings rose by 5,240 to 61,316 head, driven by increased numbers of processor cows, restocker heifers, and steers.
- The Heavy Steer Indicator eased by 18¢ to 364¢/kg liveweight (lwt), with Victoria seeing the sharpest decline of 19¢, although Leongatha recorded a high of 458¢/kg lwt.
- The Processor Cow Indicator lifted 9¢ to 310¢/kg lwt, supported by strong demand for leaner cows, especially in Victoria where prices rose by 23¢.
- Winter conditions are impacting cattle quality, contributing to price softening in export and trade categories.
Sheep Market Highlights
- Sheep yardings increased by 3,274 to 255,334 head, with lamb yardings up by 3,376.
- The Trade Lamb Indicator surged 77¢ to 1,148¢/kg carcase weight (cwt), while the Heavy Lamb Indicator rose 38¢ to 1,135¢/kg cwt.
- Record lamb prices were recorded at Wagga ($441/head) and Bendigo ($435/head), with average carcase weights of 40–42kg.
- Well-finished lambs exceeded 1,300¢/kg cwt, with 26–30kg lambs selling for $320–375/head at Wagga.
Slaughter Volumes
- Cattle slaughter fell by 5,981 to 153,008 head, though still 9% higher than the same week in 2024. Queensland saw the largest drop.
- Sheep and lamb slaughter declined by 14,788 to 498,773 head, with lamb slaughter down 15% year-on-year. The biggest drops were in South Australia, Tasmania, and Victoria.
Original reporting by Meat & Livestock Australia. Full report available here
