Mart manager Tom McGuire said that the good spell of weather has been a major help to the trade over the past few weeks. Tom said that a change in the weather would test the trade in the coming weeks. He added that farmer confidence has been dealt a blow by successive beef price cuts and it is having an impact on the mart trade.

In terms of yesterday’s trade, he said that weanlings continue to be performing the best in the area, with stores being hit with price pressure from the beef trade. Light calves and weanlings continued to be a flying trade. At the time of going to print, light weanling heifers under 200kg were frequently selling from €2.50/kg to €2.80/kg, with farmers active. Store heifers were met with a fairly good trade, with more farmer buyers active at the ringside after receiving the Basic Payment Scheme money last week.

Light store heifers made mainly from €2.10/kg to €2.20/kg, with top-quality types making up to €2.35/kg. Tom said that the gap between the price of a good-quality weanling heifer and a light store heifer is very small currently, with good-quality weanling heifers making €900 to €950 and light store heifers around 400kg making a little over €1,000/head. Commission rates are €9 to the buyer and 2% to the seller.