Australia: Young heifer to steer price disparity hits eight-year highs

Published 2024년 6월 13일

Tridge summary

The article examines the growing price disparity between young steers and heifers in the cattle market, with steers commanding higher prices due to factors like the national herd's recovery from drought and dry conditions increasing heifer supply. AuctionsPlus data reveals a 22% price premium for steers, the largest since 2016. Heifer values reflect industry confidence, with current conditions favoring steers for their predictable marketability. Additionally, heifers face lower demand from feedlots due to breed and HGP-free requirements. Despite lower heifer prices, some traders see potential profitability, especially in northern regions where feed availability is better.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

A LARGE and growing price disparity is being seen between young steers and heifers, as the industry heads towards mid-year. As regular markets columnist Chis Howie’s trading budget set out at the bottom of this article shows, there are some compelling opportunities in the heifer market at present, as a result. Some recent saleyards examples have seen the steer-to-heifer price differential grow to as much as $1/kg liveweight. Roma sale on Tuesday saw backgrounder steers 200-280kg score 2 average 367c/kg, while heifers of the same description averaged 267c – exactly 100c/kg split. The next highest weight category 280-330kg saw steers average 344c while heifers averaged 249c. A similar pattern is evident on AuctionsPlus online trading, where last week’s national sales saw weaner steers selling at a 22 percent price premium over heifers – the largest gap seen on the online trading platform since 2016. Here’s three AuctionsPlus weight range comparisons from last week’s sales: Some ...

Source: Beef Central