Factories have this week made their move to try to gain the upper hand in negotiations.

Procurement agents started talking the trade down from the end of last week and moved since the start of the week to reduce the general base quote for steers to €4.10/kg and heifers to €4.20/kg.

Their success in reducing prices is varied. Sellers with less negotiating power and smaller numbers on hand are facing the most pressure, while sellers with higher numbers and greater selling strength have, in many cases, resisted the downward pressure imposed to date.

This has left heifers trading on a base of €4.25/kg, with small numbers trading at the top end of the market securing a higher price of €4.28/kg to €4.30/kg.

Similarly, steers have moved at a base of €4.15/kg to €4.18/kg, but it should be noted that these higher prices are harder to secure as the week progresses.

Some plants are also pointing to further cuts in the coming days and some sellers view this as a ploy to try to flush out greater numbers and put additional pressure on the trade.

Some factory agents point to sterling fluctuations as unsettling the trade. Yesterday’s exchange rate dipped temporarily to 87p, but reverted to 88p during the day, similar to previous days.

Last week’s kill was recorded at 30,873 head, a reduction of 1,761 on the week previous. However, there was a day’s less killing, which does not make too much difference for most plants at this stage of the year, with plants operating well below capacity and just increasing daily throughput.

The steer kill increased 715 head to 10,209, with cattle starting to appear off grass. The cow kill also remains relatively strong at 8,255 head.

Cow prices remain very variable, depending on the purchasing plant. There is as high as 15c/kg to 20c/kg between prices paid between the top and bottom returns.

P+3 grading cows are selling anywhere from €3.25/kg to €3.40/kg, with O grading cows from €3.35/kg to €3.55/kg. Specialist plants are, in cases, paying higher for large numbers, as reflected in the Department prices.

R grading cows are selling from €3.50/kg to €3.65/kg, with U grades to €3.70/kg. The mart trade remains firm, with some marts reporting a small easing where numbers on offer have spiked.

Bull prices are facing the same pressure as steers and heifers, with 5c/kg lower quotes offered. This leaves R grading bulls trading from €4.00/kg to €4.05/kg, with U grades to €4.15/kg.

Specialised finishers continue to secure 5c/kg higher returns. Bulls less than 16 months of age are trading on a base of €4.05/kg to €4.10/kg, down from top base prices of €4.15/kg to €4.20/kg.

Firm NI trade

The northern trade is solid, with U-3 base quotes steady at £3.60/kg to £3.66/kg. This is the equivalent of €4.31/kg to €4.38/kg at 88p to the euro and including VAT at 5.4%.

Sellers with higher numbers and greater negotiating power are securing returns into the late £3.60s and early £3.70s.

Cows are firm at £2.75/kg to £2.80/kg for O grading cows (€3.29/kg to €3.35/kg), with R grades 5p/kg to 10p/kg higher.

The AHDB reports British prices continuing to increase, albeit at a slower pace. R4L steers averaged £3.70/kg (equivalent €4.43/kg) for the week ending 10 June, up 0.4p on the week previous, while R4L heifers have passed out steers by 1.7p/kg, returning an average price of £3.72/kg (€4.45/kg).

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