Live export trade slips as domestic market soaks up supply
Australia’s live cattle export numbers lifted significantly in July but remain subdued for the year-to-date compared to the five-year-average. More competition for lower supply and strong prices has impacted some of the throughput. The trade has also been impacted by the purchasing power of the Indonesian currency, and that market’s input costs and industry regulations. […]
The north-south divide is opening up again for young cattle
The cattle market felt the chill of mid-winter this week as prices fell across the board despite slightly lower throughput. Support remains seemingly strong in the south, however seasonal conditions have been less favourable in parts of the north, putting some of the pressure we saw in the late autumn back on the system. And […]
Sheepmeat exports keep ahead of shortening supply
More tariffs and quota changes are popping up, so let’s reassess the red meat export outlook and its impact on the domestic livestock markets. As we discussed last week, Australian beef headed to the US remains tariff-free for the time being, however sheepmeat hasn’t been so lucky. The latest round of tariffs out of America […]
Weekly supply jump further assists price slide
The sheep and lamb market continued to ease this week, following the downward trend it has been experiencing since prices peaked at the end of June. Despite that trend, there was a significant uptick in both yardings this week and slaughter the week prior, with all major categories recording an increase in throughput. New season […]
Aussie beef moves to more markets as quotas fill up
Australian beef currently remains exempt from Trump’s latest US tariff announcement, with the tariff free agreement confirmed late last year continuing to stand. Australia’s biggest competitor when it comes to the US beef trade, Brazil, has also managed to avoid any new tariff on their beef, as new figures show the American cattle herd is […]
Slaughter lags behind the long-term average
Sucker season is almost upon us, and despite many price indicators reflecting short supply, lamb slaughter has remained historically strong for the year-to-date. Those following along week to week will know that sheep slaughter has of course fallen off a cliff, as diminished flock numbers and improved seasonal conditions impact throughput. Let’s have a look […]
Processors pull up, restockers charge on
Saleyard sheep supply returned with a bit more vigour this week but remained at a significant deficit to the same time last year. Reflecting last week’s low yardings, the latest slaughter figures (seven days delayed) were also well down, with the mutton kill half of what it was this time last year. The renewed supply […]
Brazil beefs up US market share
The global beef market discussion was focussed primarily on the United States for much of the past few years – until China made headlines with new quotas for its imported beef at the start of the year. Now that many of those quotas are either full or nearly so, the focus has well and truly […]
Yardings down since May but year-to-date still higher
The cattle market was a bit of a mixed bag this week, with national indicators headed in both directions, but the take home seems to remain that young cattle continue to trade above month-ago levels. Yardings picked up marginally after last week’s lull and consequential dip in slaughter, as the Eastern Young Cattle Indicator rose […]
Export markets look to maintain share of Australia sheepmeat
Lamb exports remained resilient last month, but the sheep supply constraints were evident as mutton volumes fell away. China continues to bolster demand across both sectors, while the US market share of lamb has increased further to more than a third of all Australian exports. Despite current record high domestic pricing and potential for pushback, […]
Mutton and Merinos reach record returns
The split of green and red in our weekly sheep and lamb year-on-year table shows pretty clearly the current supply and demand dynamic in the market. More price records fell this week as lamb yardings fell to their lowest full five-day week figure in at least the past three years, and combined slaughter hit five-year […]
Rain maketh the sentiment
The latest Beef Producer Intentions Survey results were released by Meat and Livestock Australia earlier this month, with improving cattle prices the main driver behind the industry maintaining a positive sentiment over the past 12 months. Despite the survey being conducted in April, when many areas of southern Australia were yet to be assured of […]