Most of the power on the R2 cattle came from Waikato, but given he had little competition life was easier for him.
Heavy prime cattle made solid enough returns as Angus & Angus-Hereford steers, 597-666kg, fetched $2.63-$2.70/kg, with heavy R3 Hereford-cross heifers also falling in that range.
The R2 market was subdued, with no premium paid for any breed of steers despite a quality offering of Angus penned; and very little price advantage for steers over heifers. Angus steers, 369-428kg, were good shopping at $2.54-$2.60/kg, which was close to where Hereford-Friesian heifers of similar weight laid at $2.52-$2.58/kg. Hereford-Friesian steers fared a little better, but they had to have the quality and those that did in a 377-507kg range made $2.59-$2.67/kg, whereas second cuts earned $2.48-$2.52/kg.
The R1 pens offered up some top quality animals also but again they proved to be good shopping for those in the market. Heavy Hereford-cross and Hereford-Friesian steers, 338-357kg, came in under $1000 at $940-$985. A few lighter lines did manage to crack $3.00/kg.
A special entry of two big lines of R1 Friesian bulls met the market at $675-$735 for 219-249kg.
