Weekly Cattle and Sheep Market Wrap

Key Points

• Restocker cattle demand reflects the impact of the rainfall events of the last month.
• The National Mutton Indicator continues to recorrect.
• National cattle slaughter lifted above 150,000 head for the first time since June 2019.

Australia is heading into a series of public holidays that are expected to disrupt regular operations at saleyards and meat processing plants across the country. Market indicators and processing volumes will be impacted over the upcoming weeks. MLA will continue monitoring the prices and markets and return to regular market commentary once all saleyards are back online.

Upcoming National Public Holidays

• Easter: Friday 18 April – Monday 21 April
• ANZAC Day: Friday 25 April
• Labour Day (Queensland) and May Day (NT): Monday 5 May

A list of affected sales can be found in the article here.

Cattle Market

The mixed results in the cattle market this week were due to the volatility of supply in saleyards. This was caused by interrupted sales, with reduced yardings the week prior.

As the effects of the Queensland and NSW rain are realised in feed, confidence in the market has been reflected in the lifting of the Restocker Yearling Heifer Indicator and Restocker Yearling Steer Indicator. Despite a lift in indicator yardings, both indicators lifted 4¢ last week to 328¢/kg liveweight (lwt) and 401¢/kg lwt, respectively.

Finished animals did not fare well this week, with the Heavy Steer Indicator easing 16¢ to 356¢/kg lwt. This has further separated the gap between the steer indicators as the market reflects the weight of gaining confidence. The Processor Cow Indicator similarly fell, easing 13¢ to 284¢/kg lwt, a seeming correction of the spikes seen last week.

Sheep Market

The sheep market was similarly mixed this week. Similar to cattle, yardings were impacted by interrupted sales.

Finished stock remained relatively stable, with the Heavy Lamb Indicator and Trade Lamb moving sideways to 815¢ and 801¢/kg cwt.

Restocker lambs eased to 669¢/kg cwt, driven mostly by confidence in NSW markets pulling prices up last week, and a lack of competitive pulling them back down. The National Mutton Indicator continued its decline, down 78¢ to 431¢/kg cwt, despite a significant reduction in the supply of mutton through yards. Moving through autumn, it is likely we will see a continued reduction in supply.

Slaughter

Week Ending 11 April 2025

Processing volumes for the week ending 11 April lifted from last week as processors recovered from the impact of the floods in Queensland and prepared for several weeks of interrupted processing. Processing volumes tend to lift in the week before Easter, and this year’s increases are in line with this historical trend.

The next two slaughter reports will be impacted by the upcoming short weeks.

Cattle Slaughter

National slaughter lifted 6% to 152,180 head, thanks to significant lifts in NSW and Victoria. Both states had their largest kill weeks in five years, processing 37,994 and 25,411 head, respectively.

Consistent lifts across all states last week (up 0–⁠8%) also contributed:

• NSW up 6% to 37,994
• Queensland up 6% to 77,335
• SA up 1% to 3,815
• Tasmania up 1% to 5,016
• Victoria up 8% to 25,411
• WA steady at 2,609.

Sheep Slaughter

Lamb processing reached records, lifting 4% for a record throughput of 527,045 head, the fourth consecutive week above the half-million mark. This reflects the continued supply of the 2024 lamb cohort, many of which were retained longer due to poorer conditions and weight gain decisions.

NSW throughput lifted 5% to 131,364, its largest week since September 2024. Victoria’s throughput also lifted 3% last week to 261,758, the second-largest state throughput, just behind last month’s record. State-by-state breakdown was as follows:

• NSW up 5% to 131,364
• Queensland up 4% to 1,460
• SA up 8% to 61,959
• Tasmania up 7% to 11,563
• Victoria up 3% to 261,758
• WA up 1% to 58,941.

Lifts were also seen in sheep slaughter, which increased 4% to 197,580, though throughput remained below the 2025 average. Increases across both categories took the combined slaughter to 724,627 head, the third largest throughput of the year.

Attribute to: Erin Lukey, MLA Senior Market Information Analyst.

 

 

 

MLA

Weekly Cattle and Sheep Market Wrap: Prices Rise Amid Slaughter Decline

Cattle Market 
The GB overall all-prime cattle price saw a substantial increase of 10p/kg week-on-week, reaching 663p/kg. R4L prices for both steers and heifers climbed to 675p/kg, reflecting strong market demand. The estimated slaughter number for prime cattle was notably down, with a 5% decrease compared to the previous week.

In the week ending 15 March, GB deadweight cattle prices continued their upward trend. Overall steer and heifer prices grew by 10p/kg from the previous week, reaching 665p/kg and 663p/kg respectively. Young bulls also saw a similar increase, up 11p to 644p/kg. Deadweight cow prices rallied after muted growth in the previous week, showing an increase of 9p/kg to reach 495p/kg. This rise is the greatest for a month, suggesting it is following similar trends to prime cattle.

The estimated slaughter for GB prime cattle was down for the week ending 15 March, with an estimated kill of 33,800 head, representing a 5% drop compared to the previous week. Cow estimated slaughter followed a similar trend, down 700 head to an estimated 8,400 head.

Red meat retail performance indicates that although prices have begun to increase year-on-year, with the average price paid up 5.7%, volumes have remained relatively constant. This suggests good demand for beef despite the consumer starting to see some uplift in prices, which will be an important watchpoint over the coming months.

Sheep Market 
For the week ending 15 March, the GB deadweight old season lamb SQQ averaged 739p/kg, remaining flat compared to the previous week. This price is down 51p compared to the same week in 2024. The estimated kill was down by 10,500 head on the previous week, totaling 225,700 head, a significant drop of 4.5% on the week and 6% on the year.

Reports suggest that heavier stock appears to be dominating the market. This is supported by Defra carcase weights in February 2024, showing a slight month-on-month uplift, indicating that larger lambs that have had more time to grow are supporting supply at this time.

As the market continues to evolve, stakeholders will be closely monitoring these trends to make informed decisions. The rise in cattle prices and the steady lamb prices amidst declining slaughter numbers highlight the dynamic nature of the livestock market.

Original story: AHDB

Weekly Cattle and Sheep Market Wrap – 14 March 2025

Key Points:

• Cattle slaughter and yardings continue to be impacted by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
• A rejuvenated interest in the restocker market has been driven by the return of domestic processors.
• Despite sheep slaughter easing, combined sheep and lamb slaughter remained just below 700,000 head processed.

Cattle Market

The cattle market has been generally positive except for the Restocker Yearling Heifer Indicator. Yardings experienced a significant reduction of 31,624 to 43,942 head. This reduction is largely due to the impacts of ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred and New England producers holding onto cattle in the hopes for rainfall.

Due to weaker overall supply, there were some lifts in cattle prices. Strong export market competition drove a 25¢ lift in the Dairy Cow Indicator to total 242¢/kg liveweight (lwt). Prices increased in all states, with Victorian prices lifting a notable 27¢.

At Wagga, producers were optimistic about rainfall from ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, resulting in a price lift of 18¢ for the Restocker Yearling Steer Indicator. Nationally, prices lifted by 11¢ to 364¢/kg lwt. A rejuvenated interest in the restocker market has been driven by the return of domestic processors.

Sheep Market

With the return of domestic processors back onto the rail, there has been greater interest in trade lambs. This has led to a 9¢ lift for the Trade Lamb Indicator to 795¢/kg carcase weight (cwt). Prices eased in most states, noting a 1¢ drop in Victoria and an 8¢ lift in NSW.

Market reports noted a reduced number of heavy lambs, particularly those over 30kg. An increased supply of lighter lambs drove prices down by 17¢ to 729¢/kg cwt.

Slaughter

Week ending 7 March 2025

Cattle slaughter eased by 14,116 to 133,017 head, largely caused by significant reductions in Queensland (13,967 head) – processors shut down due to ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. Slaughter in NSW (154 head), SA (15 head) and Victoria (405 head) remained stable, only lifting slightly.

Combined sheep and lamb slaughter eased by 25,618 to 699,627 head, and sheep slaughter eased by 13,756 to 205,728 head. This drop was driven by slower Victorian (5,374 head) and WA (11,758 head) slaughter. However, NSW slaughter lifted by 2,634 head and sheep slaughter remains 1.4% above slaughter compared to the same time last year.

Lamb slaughter eased by 11,862 to 493,899 head. Despite slaughter easing, capacity continues to hover at around 500,000 head a week. The reduction was driven by easing in NSW (3,685 head), Victoria (1,484 head) and WA (6,427 head). Lamb slaughter remained positive in Queensland (17 head) and SA (705 head).

MLA