The beef price continues to move on, with an extra 5c/kg being added on to base quotes on Monday morning to secure cattle.

Quotes have crept up to €3.70/kg to €3.75/kg for heifers, with steers generally being bought at €3.65/kg to €3.70/kg.

Demand is highest for in-spec stock that fit retail specifications for supermarkets in the runup to Christmas.

Deals

Flat deals have also come into play a lot more in the last two weeks as factories do everything in their power to secure supplies.

This can be a potential option when selling dairy beef cattle that struggle to hold base price on the grid.

Flat deals of €3.95/kg to €4.00/kg have been paid for Hereford and Angus cattle this week - at a base price of €3.70/kg plus 20c/kg in-spec bonus and a 10c/kg Aberdeen Angus bonus.

Prices

Under-16-month bulls are trading off €3.60/kg to €3.65/kg on the grid. Older R grading bulls are at €3.60/kg to €3.70/kg, with U grades coming in on average 10c/kg to 15c/kg higher at €3.65/kg to €3.75/kg, with €3.80/kg also being talked about for the right type of bulls.

There is more scope around no penalties on heavy bulls, with a number of processors actively looking for heavy bulls to fill specific market requirements.

Cows have also steadied, with appetite in the market, especially for good-quality cows.

There also seems to be a demand out there for good-quality cow heifers with one calf registered.

Some of these young cows are being bought in flat deals for the wholesale butcher market, with as high as €3.70/kg to €3.80/kg flat being paid for suitable stock.

Quotes for R grading cows are back up at €3.15/kg to €3.25/kg, O grading cows in the €2.90/kg to €3.00/kg bracket and P grading cows back at €2.70/kg to €2.90/kg, depending on flesh cover and numbers.

Bargain hard

With numbers expected to tighten more in the runup to Christmas, farmers are advised to bargain hard when selling. Factories will be killing cattle for Christmas in the next two to three weeks and it's expected the price could move on more in the coming weeks.

The price has also improved in Northern Ireland (NI), with some NI plants moving to six-day kills such is the demand for beef.

Finished cattle prices are still improving, with processing plants firmly working to fill orders for the Christmas kill.

Base quotes are holding at 366p/kg (€4.33/kg incl VAT) for U-3 grading animals, but reports indicate that 370p/kg (€4.38/kg) is widely available as a starting price on prime animals.

Across the water, in Britain, the equivalent price for R4L steers is €4.54/kg incl VAT.