The trade ringside has continued its upward trajectory for most classes of store cattle over the past seven days. It sees the average store animal making €75/head more this week than at the end of the first week of November.

Within this average figure, bullocks from 500kg to 600kg have seen the biggest price rise, up €110/head, while heavier bullocks weighing 600kg-plus are up over €70/head on average.

Even compared with last week, heavy bullocks are up almost 9c/kg on the week. The average price of a 500kg to 600kg bullock is €2.62/kg, while those over 600kg are making €2.51/kg on average.

The price differential between the bottom and top third of cattle continues to tighten, as a squeeze in supply sees buyers having to compete more to secure numbers.

Heifer prices are also up, but not to the same extent, although it is likely that breeding sales earlier in the month inflated the overall average prices being reported at heavier heifer weights.

However, prices are still up to the tune of €60/head to €65/head for those weighing 400kg to 500kg, while at heavier weights, €50/head has been added to their value in the last three weeks.

It means the average price of 400kg to 500kg heifers is currently €2.46/kg, while for those in the 500kg to 600kg weight category €2.57/kg is being paid for the average animal.

At the top of the trade, the best-quality animals are demanding a 35c/kg to 40c/kg price premium above average.

Throughput in marts continues its seasonal decline, albeit later in the year than usual. Week on week, throughput is down 12%, while, compared with the first week of the month, numbers have reduced by one third.

All of these factors are helping to strengthen the trade, with the ball firmly at the sellers’ feet. In all, sellers are happy with the buoyant trade at the moment, reflected in the average clearance rate of 95% recorded in the MartBids database over the past seven days.

Weanlings

Weanling numbers remain quite steady. However, more and more are slipping into the lighter weight brackets, with very few weanlings in the 400kg-plus weight categories.

At lighter weights, bull weanlings remain a decent trade, averaging €2.66/kg and up 9c/kg on the previous week.

The average animal weighing from 300kg to 400kg is trading at a similar level to last week at €2.70/kg. However, the top third of animals are up 5c/kg or €17.50/head on a 350kg bull compared with the previous seven days.

The trade for heifers is broadly similar to last week. Again, lighter types dominate, with two thirds of weanling heifers traded being under the 300kg mark. It leaves the average price of a 200kg to 400kg animal at €2.60/kg this week.

Cows

The number of cows traded this week was up slightly on the previous week. However, it didn’t dilute the demand for stock, with the average price rising by 5c/kg.

The huge demand for manufacturing beef remains, which has put a firm floor in the cow market.