Beef quotes have at last started to move up after factories were unable to hold base prices any longer.

Base prices for bullocks have moved up to €5.00/kg, an increase of 5c/kg on the previous week, with €5.10/kg also being paid in some locations this week for larger loads of in-spec bullocks.

Heifers have also moved up, with €5.10/kg now available in a number of locations this week.

Some larger finishers have done deals with factories for €5.40/kg flat price this week for loads of continental heifers.

There is more bite to agents’ buying tactics this week as well, with some willing to pay more to lure finishers away from the normal factory that they deal with.

This is especially evident in the north of the country, where all sorts of deals are being done on weights, haulage and upward-only grid pricing.

Bonus payments of up to 30c/kg on Aberdeen Angus cattle are also being used to sway farmers with finished cattle into their lairage.

Cows

O+ suckler cows are generally working off €4.40/kg to €4.60/kg, while O grading dairy cows are being bought at €4.30/kg to €4.35/kg, depending on the part of the country you are in.

P+3 cows are working off €4.10/kg to €4.20/kg, depending on weight, age and flesh cover.

The mart trade is still a good option for farmers with smaller numbers of cows, with agents still very active for heavy well-fleshed cows.

Bulls

Under-24-month bulls are still working off a €5.35/kg to €5.40/kg base price for U grading bulls.

R grading bulls are coming in at €5.20/kg to €5.30/kg, while O grading bulls are being bought at €5.00/kg to €5.10/kg.

P grading bulls are working off €5.00/kg, depending on weight and flesh cover.

Under-16-month bulls are generally working off a €5.00/kg to €5.10/kg base price.

Factories are becoming concerned as to the availability of bulls coming from some of their big feeders later in the year and early 2025.

Large factory feeders are currently being outbid for their usual supply of weanling bulls in marts, with exporters having a stronger hand when it comes to paying big money.

On the back of no price guarantees from factories, many feeders are choosing to sit it out to see if weanling prices come back later in the autumn.

The buoyant export trade has also led to tensions rising in some marts this week, with one big factory cattle buyer telling a mart manager it was either him or the exporter and that there wasn’t room for the two of them around the ring.

Mart managers are reporting a sharper trade for factory-finished cattle in marts, with northern demand increasing over the last seven to 10 days.

Last week’s kill came in at 32,036 head of prime cattle, with another drop of almost 700 head being recorded in the last week.

Agents are reporting finished cattle numbers tightening around the country and this is leaving factories with no option but to increase the quotes to get the stock.

Prices across the water have also improved in the last seven days, with quotes across the UK up 2p to 3p/kg on the back of very tight supplies of finished cattle.

NI comment

Tight supplies have seen prices edging upwards at Northern Ireland plants, with quotes jumping 6p to 474p/kg (€5.80/kg inc VAT) for U-3 grading animals.

But deals are 20p/kg above quotes, with in-spec steers and heifers on 492p to 496p/kg (€6.02 to €6.08/kg) and bulls around 10p/kg below this level.

Cull cows are a solid trade, with top-end prices of 390p/kg (€4.78/kg) easier to come by on young suckler types with good conformation. Older cows are closer to 370p/kg (€4.53/kg).