Agents were running out of superlatives to describe cattle prices after Ballarat's July store sale recorded rates were quoted as firm to dearer on the June sale.
While last year the common phrase was that there were few cattle selling for under $1000, that figure is now $1400 to $1500.
Ballarat associated agents yarded 2250 cattle at the Central Victorian Livestock Exchange on Friday, coinciding with the first day of the latest lockdown.
However the lockdown had no detrimental influence on prices or confidence as feeders, grass finishers and restockers bid strongly for a generally "very good" yarding of cattle.
Grown steers made to $2840 and heifers to $2400 while weaner steers topped around $2200 and heifers at $2120.
TB White & Sons auctioneer Tom Madden, said the sale was "very, very good".
"Grown steers were dearer in places on last month pushed by the regular feeder buyers," he said.
"That was evident for any older cattle 380kg and upwards or any of the weaner cattle 350kg and upwards."
Mr Madden said there was a lot of calves weighing 250-320kg and sold from 600 to 700c/kg with the odd sale over that.
He said any well bred heifers in a big line sold exceptionally well to commission buyers filling orders for breeders from northern NSW.
The lighter weight Angus heifers made anywhere from 600c/kg and upwards.
The majority of the yarding was a "fair bit dearer than a month ago", he said.
Mr Madden said the yarding was "very, very good" for this time of year.
There were a lot of lighter calves but they were "in good nick".
"They were only lighter because they were only babies," he said.
Nutrien livestock manager Xavier Shanahan said weaners sold extremely well.
The highlight was the lighter heifers that sold from $1400 to $1600 for cattle weighing 250kg.
Mr Shanahan said the other factor was the sale of heavy grown steers that would normally be sold as bullocks at Christmas that sold to feeders for 100 day son feed.
"They won't be there at Christmas and that just puts pressure on supply," he said.
He said yardings were similar to last year, the difference being that the general consensus was that "this cattle job is going to stay stronger for longer than was first thought".
The strength of demand was due to a range of factors including a world-wide demand for red meat, he said.
HF Richardson auctioneer James Haddrick said they had penned a "very good" run of older heavy cattle 580 to 590kg that sold to generally firm rates.
He said the steers weighing 400 to 480kg they were firm to 20c/kg dearer, while weaners were 10 to 20c/kg dearer on the better types and up to 30c/kg dearer.
"The back end of weaner steers were making in excess of 600c/kg and 650c/kg and isolated sales out to 700 and 800c/kg," he said.
Grown heifers was strong and "mirrored the steer job".
In the general run of heavy steers the tops included a pen of 24 that weighed 593kg that sold for $2840, or 478c/kg, sold account R Dicoco.
Parke Partnership sold 24 Angus steers weighing 544kg that made $2600 or 477c/kg.
Cardarga Springs sold 10 steers at 513kg for $2580 or 502c/kg.
MW & HM Stoney sold 22 at 483kg for $2610 or 540c/kg.
Longview Agriculture Pty Ltd sold 24 steers at 471kg for $2560 or 543c/kg.
MT Freebairn sold 21 at 441kg for $2420 or 548c/kg.
IW & J Clark sold 15 steers at 474kg for $2480 or 525c/kg.
Warrnambool Agriculture sold a line of 80 calves with 23 Angus steers that weighed 355kg and made $1990 or 560c/kg. A second line of 33 at 305kg made $1910 or 626c/kg and the thirds comprised 22 that weighed 277kg and sold for $1850 or 667c/kg.
M Henry sold eight Red Angus steers at 401kg that made $2170 or 541c/kg.
L H Harris sold 17 at 290kg for $1860 or 641c/kg.
Glenore Pastoral sold nine steers at 331kg for $1850 or 558c/kg.
The Point Pastoral sold 45 with the top 15 at 257kg that sold for $1710 or 665kg and the seconds of 33 weighed 229kg and sold for $1670 or 729c/kg.
RJ Wells sold 20 Shorthorn steers that weighed 304kg that made $1800 or 592c/kg and a second line of 20 at 254kg that made $1640 or 645c/kg.
Grown heifers sold account Longview Pastoral sold in two lines including 15 at 448kg that made $2120 or 473c/kg and 13 qt 435kg for $2130 or 489c/kg.
MT Freebairn sold eight Limousin-cross heifers weighing 438kg that sold for $2180 or 497c/kg.
D & L Woods sold a pen of seven weaner heifers weighing 336kg that made $1740 or 517c/kg.
The Point Pastoral sold a pen of 29 Angus heifers, 222kg, for $1660 or 747c/kg.
A & A Perdrisat sold 11 steers, 380kg, that made $2130 or 560c/kg.
The top line of heifers sold account R & S Matthews, Weemalah Angus, weighed 330kg and sold for $2110 or 639c/kg.
Seqiris sold 59 steers that averaged $1823 or 641c/kg on an aveage weight of 284kg. The top pen of eight weighed 333kg and made $1840 or 552c/kg.
Gelliview Pastoral consigned a total of 43 grown steers that weighed an average of 503kg and averaged $2441 or 485c/kg. The tops was a pen of 12 at 567kg that made $2600 or 458c/kg.
A pen of 17 composite grown steers sold account R & R Featherson weighed 546kg and sold for $2600 or 476c/kg. A second pen of 14 at 516kg made $2400 or 465c/kg.
D Ross sold a pen of nine steers, 572kg, that made $2660 or 465c/kg. The same vendor sold eight heifers at 543kg that made $2150 or 395c/kg.
Daelroem Angus forwarded a draft of steers, 10 months, 407kg, that sold to a top of $2260 or 555c/kg.
The top pen of steers from Braemanya was a pen of 23, at 399kg, sold for $2160 or 541c/kg. The same vendor had 11 at 324kg that made $1870 or 577c/kg.
The same vendor sold 20 heifers, 370kg, for $2070 or 559c/kg.
Leading off the grown heifers was a draft from GA Crick & Co with the tops of 21 weighing 418kg making $2400 or 574c/kg.
Rogers Farming sold 12 heifers at 410kg for $2370 or 578c/kg.
A pen of 17 grown heifers weighing 579kg sold account Stonehill Partners weighed 579kg and sold for $2300.