Feilding Store Stock Sale

Sheep are still flocking into the Feilding Stock Sale.

In spite of sheep entries dropping away at most other regional sales, sheep are still literally flocking into this store sale in their droves with nearly 20,000 head entered.

Scanned ewe entries increased again and sale prices firmed again. As has been stated previously, scanned ewes have been selling at prices that seemed cheap considering the outlook so any firming does not surprise.

A new high for this saleyards for this season was achieved today when 186 Romney 5 year old ewes from Taurimu Farming, scanning with twins, sold for $190. Some pens were passed in but some of the ewes were rather ordinary in quality.

The initial summary in the store lamb sale was that sale prices were reasonably similar to last week but it became apparent that prices were in fact easing. The large number of lambs weighed the market down with almost every pen occupied and a late finish guaranteed.

This sale is unintentionally becoming the best place to sell wool with lamb cents/kg sale prices over $3/kg and a kilogram of lambs wool struggling to make $2/kg before shearing costs.

Some heavy male lambs were offered - T Wells Partnership, Taihape, sold 48 blackface ram lambs for $137 and Kiifhuss Brothers, Patea, sold 222 cryptorchids for $135.50.
Three pens of ewe lambs sold for $121; A & S Goldsbury, Wanganui, with 170 blackface ewe lambs; Norbury Farm, Pakihikura, with 208 Romneys; and Nikau Farm, Wanganui, with 176. All weight ranges eased as the sale progressed but the medium ewe lambs came under the most pressure and some sold up to $10/head less than last week. Most regions are under just a little feed pressure for now.

The cattle sale went in a different direction with many sections firming and the demand for the better beef bred cattle strengthening. More steers were entered this week, especially rising two year steers, and sale prices lifted with these lighter steers not causing so much pasture damage. 23 Charolais cross rising two year steers from "Kuratahi", Taihape, sold for $1725 ($3.37) with good traditional steers from Bullock Hills, Pahiatua, making a few cents/kg more.

Bull numbers were still low and bull sale prices lifted on the back of that. A larger entry of autumn-born rising two year Friesian bulls from Keruru Farm, Levin, sold well at prices ranging from $3.56 to $3.78/kg. The rising yearling bull prices also lifted on this market.
Heifers sold to firming demand with good traditional heifers particularly selling well.

Glenray Trust, Ohingaiti, sold their top cut of 20 Angus rising two year heifers for $1360 ($2.88) and nearly all the lighter straight Angus heifers sold for better than $3/kg. A nice line of 16 rising yearling Charolais cross heifers from Killarney Estate, Hunterville, caught the eye and sold for $1045 ($3.53).

The cattle market was generally firm for the better cattle and definitely a warmer market without the cold breeze of the sheep pens cooling prices.

Sheep (19,803): ewes (3,166); SIL (2,934), $80-$190; lambs (16,638); 41-48kg, $128-$137, $2.87-$3.17, ease; 36-40kg, $102-$130, $2.73-$3.39, ease; 31-35kg, $95-$123.50, $2.86-$3.61, ease; 28-30kg, $90-$106, $3.19-$3.51, ease.
Cattle (842): steers; R3 (62), 487-560kg, $1550-$1740, $3.00-$3.24, steady; R2 (310), 271-512kg, $900-$1725, $2.94-$3.77, lift; R1 (84), 146-253kg, $640-$1040, $3.61-$4.32; bulls; R2 (34), 277-408kg, $1010-$1290, $3.02-$3.78, lift; R1 (104), 183-285kg, $600-$1000, $3.27-$4.12, lift; heifers; R2 & 3 (166), 285-487kg, $840-$1360, $2.48-$3.23, firm; R1 (77), 161-296kg, $590-$1045, $2.35-$3.98; cows VIC (5), 772kg, $1450, $1.87.