Wodonga store cattle sale: Autumn and spring drop weaners push prices

Large lines of weaner cattle pushed prices up $100 to $150 dearer at the Wodonga store sale. See the top prices returned for a huge line of 500 steers.

Several feature lines of cattle sold at the Wodonga store sale. Picture: Petra Oates

Prices have pushed up to $150 in places for weaner steers and heifers as the spring cattle market continues to thrive.

Just on 2000 store cattle sold at the Wodonga store sale today with several large feature lines selling rapidly to eager bidders and making for a quick sale.

“It was dearer today by $100 to $150 across all categories of weaner cattle,” Elders Albury livestock manager Brett Shea said.

Mr Shea said grown steers sold fully firm to “what we’ve been seeing” retuning from 520c/kg to 550c/kg while steers under 400kg sold from 580c/kg to 600c/kg, and up above 800c/kg for lighter calves.

Michael and Anna Coughlan from Tarabah Livestock at Holbrook, NSW, offered a large line of 540 Poll Hereford steers which were largely bought up by Nutrien Delaney Livestock, who secured 224 of them for backgrounding.

The top pen of 30 steers from Tarabah weighed 307kg and sold for $2160 or 703c/kg. Their second pen of 112 at 274kg made $2025 or 739c/kg and a third pen of 167 steers at 248kg returned $1925 or 776c/kg.

WH & KM Morris at Gooramadda had another line of 100 Angus mixed sex weaners which sold to a top of 26 at 370kg for $2405 or 650c/kg.

Autumn drop calves filled the deficit of spring drop weaners which have sold earlier due to the incredible returns being seen by producers.

“There’s now autumn drop weaners starting to hit the market which are being flushed out purely because of the price,” Mr Shea said.

“I would be very surprised if there’s many people who’ve still got spring drop calves still in their paddock after how dear the store market has been.”

The heifer portion of the sale offered very few grown types, but the weaners that were offered sold with as much confidence as the steers, returning from around 580c/kg to 680c/kg.

WH & KM Morris offered 12 Angus heifers at 376kg for $2060 or 547c/kg and their second pen 19 Angus at 330kg made $2000 or 606c/kg.

Mr Shea said Northern Victoria has seen from 40-70mm of rainfall last week, fuelling what is already “the perfect storm” for the cattle market.

“It’s probably a lighter yarding than what we would normally see in October purely because the season has been very good and people might be hanging onto cattle or, more likely, people have already sold them because the job has been that good all through the winter,” he said.

“The best of our spring feed is still in front of us and that’s why people can buy up with confidence – the best is yet to come.”