BEEF PRICES FIRM

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 670, 23 May 1929, Page 10

BEEF PRICES FIRM

N.Z. STOCK MARKETS | WEEK’S SALES REVIEWED (By R.W.C.) Yesterday’s Westfield market was an erratic one. A abort yarding of beef saw the market for steers advance sharply. Cow and heifer beef, on the other hand, while very firm, showed little appreciable change, and remained upon levels which allowed exporters to operate. Fat sheep were 1 yarded in large numbers, but the - quality was not good, and a dull sale resulted. Passings were heavy. The offering of approximately 175 steers was made up largely of wellfinished handy weight cattle drawn mostly from King Country and Waikato pastures. The few steers from the North were exceptionally well done, and came little short of topping the market. Some of the best quality lines of steers came from Messrs. Alex On* (Wiri), Jas. Taylor (Cambridge). C. J. Stewart (Ohinewai), Mrs. Main (Hautapu), and the Matarawa Land Company (Putaruru). Very few lines of outstanding qualj ity were noted in the cow and heifer ! section. One of the best quality lines of the day came forward on account ®f a King Country vendor in 24 extra choice medium-framed young cows and heifers, which met with keen competition at up to £lO 7s 6d. A. E. Rossiter, Papatoetoe, and R. and W. Hellaby, Ltd., got the two best pens. The Waikato vendor who topped the market in the ox beef section secured the best price for cows with three heavy prime beasts which went to Fearon Bros., Avondale, for £ll 10s. A line on account of F. N. Twining, Pokeno. went to H. R. Brindle, Edendale, for £ll 2s 6d. While there was a very short market, the big butchering firms were not large buyers on the day. and the smaller men were able to fill the bulk of their requirements early in the sale. The result was that, when the sale came to the cows and heifers, buyers were not prepared to pay the premiums given for the steers. While prices in this section were very firm, therefore, there was little appreciable advance over the whole section. Poorer Quality Sheep The sheep offering was the biggest for several weeks, but the average quality was not high, and the market throughout lacked spirit. Passings have not been so numerous for many weeks. While there was hardly A line in the yard that did not qualify for place in I the fat sheep pens, many appeared as if they had been held pending sale, and were going off in condition. There was actually a lack of bloom and finish on many lines. The bigger buyers were not noticeably interested in the offering, only giving their attention to extra special lots, and even the smaller men displayed a noticeable lack of interest. The bulk of the offering was held at reserves fully up to last week’s firm rates and, consequently, with the lack of interest in the market, the sale dragged and passings were frequent. Generally, the market could be termed par to slightly under late rates. Top price for wethers was secured for a line of extra prime big-framed sheep sold very early in the sale at | 425. An attempt to sell equally good sheep ’from the same line at the same figure later in the sale failed. An ex- | ceptionally choice prime line of big- ! framed wethers on account of Murray > and Maloney, Glen Murray, sold at up to 41s. ! The ewe offering was a most mediocre one. with nothing up to the standard of last week. Lambs came forward in average numbers for this time of the year and sold at late rates. Slightb* under an average yarding of calves met with a very firm market, the demand for well finished mediumweight vealers being specially keen. Pigs sold at late rates with bigframed stores in slightly better demand. Fat Cattle Held in the Country Yesterday’s sharp rise in the market for ox beef cannot be taken with any great degree of seriousness. The short yarding was only the expected sequence to the very heavy yardings ; of the two previous weeks. According to fat stock buyers for the bigger j butchering firms, who are constantly ] on the move throughout the province ample supplies of fat cattle are still' available, but with the very mild weather experienced up to date, srraziers are still favoured with plenty of feed and are able to hold longer. In manv cases, considering the comparative!v high prices of stores, ’.1103- do not see any profit in quitting unless a feed shortage makes such a move necessary. It is quite on th- c-.-ds that normal i supplies of ox beef will be forward ! next week's Westfield sale. sheep market presents quite a different proposition. Indications are that the country is not overburdened with supplies of fa.ts, but in any case prices are still slightly below those at corresponding date of last year, j Stortford Lodge Sale I In the Stortford Lodge (Hastings) yards jesterdaj-, a medium yarding in ‘most a stead >' demand at 1 k % rates V Hoggets were slightly easier. herd met with very keen competition, and averaged £l2 IDs. Fat bullocks made £l2 10s to £ls* fat cow’s. £7 to £8 17s 6d; fat heifers, £8 10s to £3l; w’eaner steers, £6: dairy in ss *° £lS ? s; dair T heifers, £9 to £lo 10s; fat wethers, 30s to 32s Od * fat ewes, 2os to 28s 9d; ewes in lamb | (Romney rams), 26s to 30s id; ewes in , lam b (Southdow’n rams), to 29s 9d. j Beef Easier at Johnsonville I In the Johnsonville (Wellington) yards 1 *f®?J, er<iay ’, there was a large yarding of i ca ttle> and an average yarding of sheen I and lambs. The cattle w’ere of good I prime quality, and comprised a few pens I - heavy-weight. bullocks. As romnared : ; AMth hst week, beef was slightlv easier | All classes of sheep met with keen competition, and a total clearance was I effected at late rates. Lambs met with j a keen demand. UnF. r w eS W £ re ,i Shocks, £ls TOs to £ 16 10s, heavy bullocks, £l4 to £ls 10s; cows j £ ® to £lO 12s 6d: vealers, light £i 15s | 2 17 ?_ 6d > medium £3 to £4 2s 6d*I * ers ’o- heavy * U P to 38s: we tliers, 34s i | ,Jci to 3_. s; ewes, heavy, 27s to 28s 9dj to £2 17s 6d, medium £3 to £ 4 2s Gd : ! Addington Market : Exporters operated freely in the fat sheep pens at Addington yesterday. Extra prime wethers sold to 40s Id; prime 5t U li rS 99 32S i- 6d v to 355; medium wethers, _9s to 325; light wethers, 26s 6d to 2Ss 6d; extra prime ewes, to 34s lOd; medium ewes, 24s to 28s; light ewes, 20s to 235: aged, 1 < s 6d to 19s 6d. A yarding of 1.650 fat lambs met with steady competition. Extra prime lambs made to 36s 7d; prime, 30s 6d to 335; | medium. 2Ss 6d to 30s; light, 24s to 2Ss. A yarding of 555 head of fat cattle met with a slightly easier market. Extra prime ox beef made to 44s a hundred. Extra heavy prime steers made to £22 2s 6d; extra choice young cow and heifer, to £ls 7s 6d. Vealers met with a brisk sale. Eighteen months sorts sold to £9 13s 6d; good I vealers, £6 to £7 ss; calves, 20s to 355. Westfield Prices Prices at Westfield yesterday ranged as tollow: Cattle.—Exceptionally heavy prim' l steers made to £l7 3 2s 6d; heavy prime. £ls 5s to £l6: medium, £l3 7s 6d to £ls: light and small, from £9 10s. Heavy ! prime young cows and heifers, to £ll 1.0 s; medium. £7 10s to £8 17s 6d; light, rough and plain, from £5. Calves.—Heavy vealers made up to £ 6 4s: medium. £3 10s to £4 6s: light, from £2 ISs to £3 Ss: rough and nlain. fr-.-o •22 to £2 13s: small and fresh-tlrou- =■ •. from 7s to £1 ISs. Sheep.—Extra heavy prise wethers

! sold to £2 2s for wethers sold on account of W. J. Marks and purchased* by ' Messhs. Wilson, Scott, eNars, Brindle and Mann, butchers; heavy prime, £1 17s to j £1 18s 6d; merium prime, £1 15s 6d to I £1 16s 9d; light prime, £1 14s 6d to £1 15s 3d; small and unfinished, £1 8s to £1 13s; heavy prime ewes, £1 10s to £1 13s 9d; medium prime, £1 7s to £1 9s 9d; light prime, £1 5s 6d to £1 6s 9d. Lambs.—Extra heavy prime lambs made £1 6s 9d to £1 Ss 6d, an odd extra special lamb selling up to £1 12s; heavy prime. £1 4s 6d to £1 6s 6d; lighter prime. £1 2s 6d to £1 4s 3d; light prime, £1 Is to £1 2s 3d: small and plain, 14s to £1 Is Pigs.—Choppers sold at £2 to £3 17s , Gd; heavy and medium baconers, £ls 16s I to £4 9s: light baconers and heavy porkers, £3 to £3 14s: medium porkers and light porkers, £2 Ss to £2 18s: small and unfinished porkers, £1 13s to £2 3s; large stores made £1 10s to £1 16s; slips, £1 to £1 Ss; weaners, 5s to 12s.