Quotes for cattle at the plants this week have firmed slightly by 2p/kg. The quotes for both steers and heifers are mostly at 320p/kg all-in for in-spec animals, although one factory remains at 318p/kg. After the recent lull, there are more cattle starting to come off grass this week, but numbers are still reasonably tight and deals well ahead of base quotes are still possible. The trade in cattle for slaughter in and out of NI last week saw imports from the south at 680 head, the biggest weekly import so far this year. Imports from Britain were at 176 head, with 68 going in the opposite direction and 78 head going south. The kill last week of 7,127 was the largest kill since mid-June. The prices paid last week were up slightly, with prime cattle averaging 316.6p/kg. R3 grading heifers averaged 327.3p/kg. Quotes for good grade R and O+ cows are steady and are in the range 250p to 260p/kg. R4 grading cows averaged 268p/kg last week.