Australia -This weeks Cattle markets.

AUSTRALIA-Cattle market alert

Easter tightens throughoutThroughput across MLA’s NLRS reported saleyards dropped considerably from last week, with a 26% reduction in yardings. All states witnessed the fall in numbers with only a few saleyards penning similar numbers to the previous week.Queensland throughput plummeted 41% with the majority of markets penning half of previous sales. Scattered showers in supply areas played a significant role in restricting throughput however the major factor contributing to the lower numbers was the shorter weeks leading up to and after Easter. NSW yarded 30% less cattle and Victoria numbers slipped 6%. Like Queensland, scattered showers and the shorter weeks were the main factors behind the slump in throughput. However the fall in prices the pervious week also initiated producers to hold on for an optimistic price rise.The quality of cattle was quite mixed, however plain lines made up the largest percentage of the yardings. Young cattle and cows tended to make up the majority of numbers whilst export grades slipped. Evidently the rise in the A$ and fall in corresponding prices encouraged producers to hold onto such categories.Quality has implications for pricesPrices generally eased across the board despite numbers being well back. Processors and feeders purchased more numbers last week in the larger than normal yardings to compensate for the drop in numbers this week. Evidently they have been less active and only interested in suitable lines which are hard to come by. Prices improved on quality well finished grades as a result however the large percentage of plain cattle encouraged an overall cheaper trend. The rise in the A$ has also had implications for prices, especially in the export grades. Restockers however have tended to be relatively active throughout the week.At the conclusion of Tuesday markets the Eastern Young Cattle Indicator (EYCI) lifted 0.5¢ on the previous week to settle at 313.75¢/kg cwt. The trade steer indicator improved 1¢ – to 171¢ whilst feeder steers slipped 1¢ – to 167¢/kg. Both the Japan ox and US cow indicators finished 2¢ cheaper at 159¢ and 122¢/kg respectively.