THE potential threat of a tariff on Australian products by China has failed to deter buyers at Tamworth's weekly lamb and cattle sales on Monday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Farmers looking to restock after recent rain dominated the markets, as prices continued to soar in most categories.
More than 1000 head of cattle were snapped up, while more than 1800 head of sheep were also up for bids.
Read Also:
McCulloch stock agent Mitchell Swain said prices at this week's sales "only got higher".
"Personally, I think we can expect prices to stay pretty solid for a while," Mr Swain said.
"Restockers are still really eager to get into the market because there has been a lot of good feed crops like oats that have been planted and they want to get some stock onto them.
"However, the price has continued to rise from where most people thought it would cap out, so those that have already bought would be really happy."
Mr Swain said the political tensions between Australia and China had done little to impact prices at the region's saleyards.
"Judging by the prices, it's had little effect because the prices have just kept rising," he said.
"I think the biggest factor around at the moment is the limited amount of stock available right now.
"We had over 1000 head of cattle in Tamworth today [Monday], but most weeks the numbers are mostly in the hundreds, which is the same sort of story for Gunnedah.
"It's certainly making it tough for those that haven't restocked already, that's for sure."
Mr Swain said a wet winter forecast would only give producers more confidence going forward.
"I think there's really no time like the present for anybody looking to restock," he said.
"The prices have continued to climb and people who wanted to wait and see if the prices dropped are now looking at paying more than ever.
"But if you were to buy quality stock, I think it would work out quite well with how this season looks to be panning out."
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
