The most recent Narromine Store Sheep Sale on Wednesday November 16 saw a yarding of 10,500 head down 3000 head on a month ago.
The stock yarded were, in the main, much plainer in condition and quality than in previous months.
A smaller crowd than normal was in attendance drawn from Tamworth, Forbes, Guyra, Cowra, Coonamble, Dunedoo, Warren, Parkes, Trangie along with good local support.
Some quotes include: First-cross ewes, August/September 2010 drop, August-shorn $204.
The balance of the better end of the first- cross ewes sold from $170 to $198. Plainer lines of first-cross ewes could be purchased for as little as $133.
Young first-cross ewes with 100 per cent lambs at foot sold from $182 to $220 per unit. Store lambs were well represented and showed more quality than the overall yarding to sell from $78 to $105.
Merino ewes sold to lower levels than the previous sale but much of this loss was quality related.
A good line of Merino ewes, August/September 2010 drop, May shorn, NSM $186.
Quite a number of pens of Dohne and Samm-cross ewes were available selling from $102 to $152 per head.
Merino ewes, 3-1/2 years 100 per cent scanned to Poll Dorset rams achieved the price of $143. The balance of the older and plainer ewes sold from $72 to $115. Pens of Merino mixed sexes, along with their young brothers, sold from $52 to $70.
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Statistics just released by MLA indicate that for the first two weeks of November, cattle yarding contracted by 5 per cent with a corresponding rise in price. For example yardings in Queensland reached a four-month low.
On the other hand lamb offerings rose by 17 per cent to record 179,309 head for last week which was the largest weekly lamb market for the previous six months.
As a direct result of these increased numbers lamb prices eased across the board.
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The local butcher survey for October has just been released and has shown an improvement in sales of lamb and beef while sales of chicken and pork have been slower.
Of the butchers surveyed 41 per cent rated their lamb sales as “very good to excellent”.
Beef sales have also been outstanding when compared to September.
Pork and chicken both lost ground during October and most butchers remained cautious re the current market conditions.
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The above average season across most of the continent has seen cattle slaughter weights reach a record high in September of 290kg/head carcase weight, Queensland topped the tally at 305kg cwt.
Total slaughter for the month of September was 620,057 head. No doubt the loss of some live export volume helped.
these figures.
Year on year for the month of September live sheep at 275,583 head increased almost fourfold.
Kuwait (117,997 head), Qatar (71,423 head) and Turkey (32,365 head) all increased from zero last September. Over 50 per cent of all live sheep originated from Western Australia with both South Australia and Victoria supplying substantial numbers.
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