SALEYARD prices have continued to increase this week, with the benchmark Eastern Young Cattle Indicator jumping above 750c/kg carcase weight for the first time this year.

Big numbers have continued to flow through Northern saleyards this week, with Roma agents penning more than 10,000 head for the second day in a row today. 6600 are on the draw for Dalby tomorrow.

Prices appear to have held up in the face of the supply with the indicator closing yesterdat at 759c/kg carcase weight – which is 119c higher than this time last year – and reaching 772c/kg at the time of publishing this article on Tuesday afternoon.

The last time the EYCI was above 750c was in February 2023 when the market was on its way down from its record of more than 1000c the year before.

While it has been remarkably stable in hovering between 650c and 700c for most of this year, the EYCI has been on the rise since the middle of May. The indicator made it close to 750c mark for most of last week, closing at 747c/kg carcase weight.

This week’s Wagga sale appears to have been the main factor tipping the EYCI above 750c, with its EYCI contribution from this week’s sale averaging 908c.

Roma agents are currenlty working their way through another 10,000 head, with full results not available at the time of this report.

Cows continue to climb

Cows are continuing to come to market with strong demand from processors across the country, but particularly in Victoria where dry conditions have left a shortage of heavy cattle.

The demand for heavy cattle has seen a flush of cows coming into saleyards, with more than 2000 at Roma today and another 2000 booked in for Dalby tomorrow.

Meat & Livestock Australia’s processor cow indicator has been increasing since the middle of June, going from 272c/kg to close yesterday at 315c/kg liveweight.

What is the EYCI?

The Eastern Young Cattle Indicator (EYCI) is the general benchmark of Australian cattle prices. The indicator is a seven-day rolling average produced daily by MLA’s National Livestock Reporting Service. The EYCI includes vealer and yearling heifers and steers, grade score C2 or C3, 200kg+ liveweight from saleyards in NSW, QLD and VIC. The results include cattle purchased for slaughter, restocking or lotfeeding and are expressed in c/kg dressed weight.