NSW cattle bolster Pakenham sale

Agents drafted 2430 steers and heifers and 87x24 cows and calves.

Read more: Pakenham store cattle market draws lighter weights

"I sold a lot of cattle out of the Bega Valley, which is terribly dry," Nathan Gibbon, Nathan Gibbon Livestock, said.

"I also had cattle out as far as Wagga and from Booligal, north of Hay."

Gippsland agents were also very active at last week's Bega, NSW, store sale, bringing cattle back to Victoria.

Mr Gibbon said most of the cattle he sold went to local fatteners with feedlots noticeably absent.

He said about 400 of the 700-strong consignment he sold would have come from NSW.

"A lot of those cattle are still healthy, and they are travelling well, but there is very limited feed," he said.

"That area is noted for its very dry winters, it had been good for a few years, but it's very ordinary at the moment.

"Until these areas have rain, these numbers will keep on coming."

Mr Gibbon said "neat" 200-300-kilogram cattle sold quite well, but anything off-bred was cheaper.

Cattle up to feedot weight were slightly cheaper, but still made good money.

He said the sale was similar to a fortnight ago.

Anthony Delaney, Rodwells, Pakenham, said the top end of the cattle sold well, to equal rates.

"The top end was still over $3, any decent, sought after pens, we sold some 413kg heifers for $3.20," Mr Delaney said.

"Our best steers, our heavier steers, were $3.20 as well, and our best weaner calves made about $3.50.

"Once you got off your pen lots to your bits and pieces, singles, and so forth, it took a bit of a dive."

The major feedlots were quieter than usual.

"Late August we had a fair bit of rain, which has set us up for some sort of spring," he said.

Local restockers were noticeable again.

"There was a little bit more local competition about, not huge, but just enough," he said.

He anticipated more local competition would come in the next few months.

Jarrod Bennetts, Everitt, Seeley & Bennetts, said he felt prices for the better end of the cattle were firm.

"Once you got off those cattle, it was a bit sticky," Mr Bennetts said.

"It was cheaper on the secondary lots."

Locals picked up the smaller, secondary lots.

"South Gippsland is not really firing just yet, because of the amount of water down there, they were not that strong," he said.

The number of cattle offered more than doubled on the previous sale and Mr Bennetts said that might have affected prices.

"I would have thought the better end of our heavier steers were making $3.20 to $3.30, the plainer bred steers struggled and were making $2.80 to $3.00," he said.

He said the heifer section held up, with little change from the previous sale.

Sales included a draft of 13 Angus steers, from Campaspe Park, 358kg, which sold for $1010 a head, or 282 cents a kilogram.

Campaspe Park also sold 14 heifers, 340kg, for $980, or 288c/kg.

Quarterford Angus, Mt Duneed, sold 17 Angus steers, 352kg, for $1320, or 375c/kg.

Boyanda Farms sold 23 Red Angus steers, Paringa-blood, 317kg, for $1120, or 353c/kg.

CR Dixon, Koo Wee Rup, sold 11 steers, 350kg, for $1100, or 312c/kg.

The first pen of 9 Bonameade, Drouin South, Angus steers, 512kg, sold for $1600, or 312c/kg, while the second pen of 10, 476kg, went for $1580, or 331c/kg.

G&J Ablethorpe, Tooradin, sold 15 heifers, 342kg, for $1035, or 302c/kg.

M&J Knight, Tanjil South, sold 14 heifers, 311kg, for $870, or 279c/kg.

Boneo Investments, Rosebud, sold 11 steers, 506kg, for $1580, or 312c/kg.

Oamaru Park, Sunbury, sold 10 Angus steers, 405kg, for $1180, or 291c/kg.

GJ and EA Reid, Longwarry, sold 17 heifers, 449kg, for $1170, or 260c/kg.

DP & JS Newman, Westbury, sold 5 steers, 361kg, for $1120, or 310c/kg.