Mutton market jitters at Bendigo

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Slight lift in both lamb and sheep supply, but the main issue for this market appeared to be processor demand and kill space. The market opened soft and then progressively got cheaper as buyers filled limited orders. At least four buyers didn’t follow onto the sheep sale and the mutton market suffered a late collapse of up to $50 per head after starting at $20 to $30 off the pace of last Monday. In the lamb section the main supermarkets and a key southern exporter remained absent while most other buyers were selective and operating at reduced levels. Heavier slaughter lambs over 24kg cwt were $5 to $15 cheaper. Light lambs under 20kg held their value and many onlookers commented on how they were still selling well compared to the reduced rates for heavy lamb and sheep categories.

Bidding for the lead pens of export lambs weakened as the sale progressed for a range of $174 to $224, or 550c to 650c/kg cwt depending on where in the auction they sold. The cost to exporters for runs of heavy lambs was estimated at 590c to 610c/kg cwt. Better presented trade lambs $130 to $160/hd for a ballpark average of 580c/kg on the main runs. Plainer and small pen lots of lambs were often treated harshly in this sale and were pulled below 550c at times. In comparison light lambs still sold to solid demand at $100 to $125 for the better framed types, and $60 to $90 for small lambs. Restocking demand was subdued although some agents stepped in and purchased bigger trade weights as the market eased.

In the early sheep run prices were $20 to $30 softer but later in the auction the market lost up to $50 per head compared to a week ago. It meant there was a wide price spread of 100c to 260c/kg recorded over the mutton run. Early in the auction there was big Merino ewes in a skin to $95 and Merino wethers to $88, but the sale then dropped to between $20 to $60 over a lot of trade and heavy sheep. Rams were $2 to $10/hd.

https://www.bendigo.vic.gov.au/Services/Bendigo-Livestock-Exchange