The cattle trade on Monday last at Carnaross Mart saw a steadier trade. Mart manager Pat Larmer said that, despite the dip in prices the previous week, Monday and Tuesday’s trade was much steadier.

Pat said that the best trade on the day was for fleshed cattle and heifers. He said that there were a few butchers active, which kept a firm floor under the price of beef heifers.

Good-quality weanling heifers were a strong trade also and prices of those from 300kg to 400kg ranged mainly from €800 to €900/head, which led to high clearance rates.

However, he highlighted the fact that Friesian and plainer-quality cattle were a more difficult sell on the day and prices were back by €60 to €70 per head as a result. Lesser-quality store cattle also saw prices ease slightly.

In terms of northern demand, Pat said that there still are some northern buyers at the ringside who were buying in euros. However, he said that the test of Northern demand will really be seen in the coming weeks.

Last Thursday saw a dairy dispersal sale, which saw quite strong demand from Northern buyers. The past week saw over 1,100 cattle pass through the mart.

Commission rates are €9 to the buyer and €13 to €15 to the seller.