An eager crowd attended the South-West Victorian Livestock Exchange in Warrnambool for their June store sale where competition for cattle had been down from previous sales.
Agents yarded about 1200 cattle with the gallery bidding on pens in glorious sunshine one moment and then in heavy spot showers the next.
Local buyers competed mainly with feedlot buyers and agents from northern Victoria and South Australia.
A good run of Angus steers with weight at the beginning of the sale also generated interest from several feedlotters and commission buyers
Stock agent with J&J Kelly Stock Agency Jack Kelly said feedlots were underpinning the industry for a while and younger cattle had made things a little harder for sellers at this time of year.
READ MORE:
"[Feedlots] can come in for cattle, probably looking for a male, for about 350 to 550 kilograms," he said.
"Because they pop them in the feedlot, they're not in for long, and they're getting rid of their product by taking them out again at the other end.
"If you have got weight in your cattle right now, you have nothing to worry about, but once you start to put these young small cattle in, it makes it much harder [to sell]."
"Because they pop them in the feedlot, they're not in for long, and they're getting rid of their product by taking them out at the other end."
Mr Kelly said not many areas were blessed with feed at the moment, except for parts of New South Wales which he said was "still quite wet" and that in part influenced the quieter gallery.
"Normally, they wouldn't come on the market until the end of August."
But despite this Mr Kelly said there was some good interest in many open auction pens where cattle had been beautifully bred which topped either 775c/kg or $1730 a head.
Open auction heifers also sold well, with heavier pens up to $1410.
Mr Kelly said vendors should heed caution at times when feed isn't out.
"Our smaller heifers also sold well, but as the regular market has had a bit of a correction, so has the store market too," he said.
"In saying that, beautifully bred cattle are selling well, and I thought those Angus had sold well.
"But you need to be careful when you get into little Friesians, because that's a hard sell which will continue until the feed or grass comes through."
He also said the area was lucky with the weather being pleasant, which has changed from some drier months to begin the year and was hopeful that the market would look up in the next few months.
"We've been up to around 15 or so degrees, but the next week will be a bit cold," he said.
"Some rain has been seen here recently, which is great and down the track I think we will have plenty of feed."
But despite the hard sell for agents, Mr Kelly said the vendors that he spoke to in attendance were in overall happy with the prices they received.
Heavier steers between 400 and 500 kilograms had sales up to 614 cents a kilogram, while lighter cattle up to 400kg topped at 646c/kg.
Heifers under 300kg did not pass 600c/kg, with 594c/kg being the top price, while heifers that were more than 300kg remained didn't go past 542c/kg.
A & A Beard sold 17 Angus steers, 327kg, for 646c/kg or $2112.
J Hay & D Werchon sold 14 Angus steers, 324kg, 626c/kg or $2028 and another pen of 10 Red Angus steers, 315kg for 620c/kg or $1890.
Ysbrand Park sold 15 Angus steers, 423kg, for 600c/kg or $2538.
Rosedale sold 14 Angus steers, 440kg, for 590c/kg or $2296.
R Sinnott sold 15 Black Baldy steers, 415kg, for 542c/kg or $2249.
Ballanleigh sold nine Angus heifers, 320kg, for 558c/kg or $1758.
Rockbank sold 10 Angus heifers, 307kg, for 594c/kg or $1823.
C & B Pike sold 18 Murray Grey heifers, 287kg, for 560c/kg or $1607.
