Stonger vibe as Restocker re-enter the market at Bendigo

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Yarding - 27,430

Stronger lamb and mutton sale across a modestly bigger yarding of 27,430 head - up 4500 on a week ago. The major supermarkets and a key southern exporter were absent but the lamb market was still able to post gains of $5 to $15 across most grades. The mutton market lifted $10 to $20/head for a significant rally off the low levels of recent weeks.

The big mover was light lambs which gained $8 to $15, pushed up by restockers who went harder against processors wanting MK kill lambs. The better bred lines of light lambs mostly made between $50 to $80, while the very smallest types rarely went under $20 in this sale. The bigger framed 16-18kg crossbred store lambs averaged $74 to the paddock and the 12-16kg lines $60 to restockers. The average cost on a weight basis for light lambs went above 400c/kg cwt.

Not a lot of heavy prime lambs again and anything showing weight and fat cover received the best support. The heaviest suckers, 26-30kg cwt, $135 to $177, averaging over 500c and some pens above 550c. Trade lambs also averaged dearer but were erratic, some very good sales and others not much better than a week ago. The 24-26kg cwt young lambs $123 to $145, and the 22-24kg $102 to $136 to average $115 at a ballpark 480c/kg cwt. Shorn young lambs sold particularly well, a northern based exporter buying pens with frame to put on feed at $90 to $115. A pen of heavy shornies up around 28-29kg cwt topped the section at $164.

There was a much stronger vibe amongst processors in the sheep run despite not all exporters operating. Sheep quality was also very good with large lines of heavy mutton available. Prices lifted $10 to $20/head with Merino sheep recording the best gains. Most sheep sold between $30 to $50/head with heavy Merinos in a skin out to $60. On a carcass basis there was still some extra heavy crossbred ewes under 100c/kg, but most mutton went from 120c to 200c/kg for market averages of 140c to 160c/kg cwt over the mains.

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