Numbers at Bairnsdale's monthly store cattle sale jumped on Friday, as the financial year draws to a close.
Agents yarded about 2500 head of cattle, after initially expecting 1500.
Nutrien Sharp Fullgrabe auctioneer Graeme Fullgrabe said producers were chasing 'good money.
"They want to spend a few bob before June 30 and others want to sell a few and earn a few bob," Mr Fullgrabe said.
"No-one knows what the job is going to do, worldwide and we all thought south Gippsland was going to be dry.
"It is dry there is a green tinge down there, which will provide feed through to spring so producers might want a few cattle too."
Feedlots were putting a floor in the market, he said.
"Jeez they are good," he said.
Buyers for Westside Meats, Bacchus Marsh, and Garrison, Swan Hill, were the two prominent feedlots at the rail.
"There were also local blokes, who want to background cattle, and have them at 400-450 kilograms by the springtime," Mr Fullgrabe said.
"When vealers were making good money, a few years ago, they would have been in the veal pens but the store price is better than the prime price.
"There were some very, very good cattle, but some cross-bred and Friesian-type steers as well.
"They are making less money but they were of a lesser quality."
Bill Wyndham and Co auctioneer Gerard Ogilvie said the good yarding of Hereford and straight-bred steres sold very strongly.
"It was similar to the last store sale, last month," Mr Ogilvie said.
"There were certainly more dairy and dairy cross cattle yarded - for what they were they also sold strongly."
Elders auctioneer Morgan Davies said there might have been the 'odd hole' in the sale but overall it was a good result.
"The cattle that are taking a bit of nutrition to get them up and going probably just showed a cheaper trend, but everything else was fully firm," Mr Davies said.
There was a lot of east Gippsland competition, with several feedlots and buyers from south Gippsland.
"East Gippsland is traditionally very mild in winter and we have had a very mild start, so we couldn't have had a better 12 months," he said.
Friesian and cross-bred cattle were cheaper.
"There were not a lot of light heifers, but they were quite strong," he said.
"A lot of people see winter as a tough time to get through and those secondary type cattle always absorb a lot of nutrition, so people are probably steering away from them."
Bairnsdale always experienced a big store sale in May, after holidays in April tended to disrupt the regular markets, Mr Davies said.
Ray White sold 13 Angus steers, 700kg, for $3500 or 500c/kg.
CD & CJ Cooper, Wulgulmerang, sold 21 Karoonda, Mawarra and Glendan Park-blood Hereford steers, 402kg, for $2480 or 616c/kg.
Their seconds, 16 head, 373kg, sold for $2250 or 603c/kg.
L Griggs sold 15 Angus steers, 314kg, for $2080 or 662c/kg.
They sold 18 seconds, 269kg, for $2080 or 773c/kg.
Larnook sold 18 Angus heifers, 399kg, for $2370 or 593c/kg.
Young's Creek Pastoral Company sold nine Charolais steers, 501kg, for $2820 or 562c/kg.
Their seconds, a pen of 16, 422kg, sold for $2620 or 620c/kg.
CJ Treasure, Bairnsdale, sold 30 head of Hereford steers, 376kg, for $2200 or 585c/kg.
Their seconds, 30 head, 360kg, sold for $2130 or 591c/kg, while a third pen of 26, av 316kg, sold for $2090 or 661c/kg.
ML and GM Lee sold 13 steers, 505kg, for $2870 or 568c/kg.
P and J Barton sold nine steers, 365kg, for $2280 or 624c/kg.
LH and JL Reed sold 24 Angus steers, 315kg, for $2140 or 679c/kg.
Their seconds, a pen of 24, 287kg, sold for $2030 or 707c/kg.
A further 22 steers, 318kg, sold for $2020 or 635c/kg, while his pen of 23 steers, 311kg, sold for $1900 or 610c/kg.
RAP and H Bowman sold 17 Charolais steers, 363kg, for $2160 or 595c/kg.
MT Mitchell sold 16 Charolais steers, 343kg, for $2000 or 583c/kg.
Condon/Lee sold 21 Angus heifers, 368kg, for $2230 or 606c/kg.
J Wilson sold four heifers, 390kg, for $2180 or 558c/kg.
RM Treasure, Bairnsdale, sold 15 unweighed heifers for $1570.