Cattle Power Rankings: Listings Remained Firm While Clearance Rates Softened

Commercial cattle offerings for the second quarter of 2022 (1 April-30 June) reached a total of 232,925 head - a 3.2% rise from the first quarter of 2022 and a 4.5% rise from the corresponding quarter in 2021.

While overall listings for the quarter held firm, clearance rates reached 72.4%, with a notable decline in the percentage of Queensland cattle listings selling online over the three-month period compared to the same period in 2021. While overall prices across key cattle categories remained high throughout the quarter, decreasing purchases and lower clearance rates were indicative of waning confidence in the market - exaggerated by the lofty heights of the market at the beginning of the quarter.

Regional throughput:

Heifers and breeding cows accounted for 59% of listings across the quarter, with 136,570 head, while steer listings accounted for 35%, with 82,536 head. Delving deeper into throughput regions for the quarter, the top ten regions (Table 1) remained largely the same from the first quarter of the year, with Southern Queensland reclaiming the top position from the NSW North-West Slopes and Plains.

The NSW Northern Tablelands, ranking second on the overall quarterly cattle throughput, registered a 38% year-on-year rise in listings. Southwest Victoria, ranking sixth with 13,645 head, registered the largest annual change in listings, increasing by 50% from the corresponding quarter in 2021. Despite these regions recording a significant rise in total listings, clearance rates averaged lower, as the pace of herd rebuilding slowed from 2021. The NSW Northern Tablelands recorded a clearance of 70% - back from 74% in the corresponding quarter in 2021, while Southwest Victoria registered a clearance of 61% for the quarter, down from 86% in 2021.

Looking to Queensland, the total throughput for top-ranked Southern Queensland was up by 18% from the previous quarter and 17% higher year-on-year, with a total of 32,865 head listed. Western Queensland which ranked fifth in the top ten listing regions with 17,867 head, saw numbers slip back 1%. Northern Queensland registered a total of 12,883 head listed across the quarter - a 37% year-on-year decline.

Regional purchasing trends:

Across the quarter, overall cattle purchases declined in comparison to the corresponding quarter in 2021 (Table 2). Western Queensland was the only region in the top 10 to register an increase in cattle purchased compared to the corresponding 2021 quarter. This underpins the significance of restocking intentions of producers in 2021, while the purchasing of cattle in 2022 plateaued. Looking through a broader lens, the seasonality of the cattle market coupled with widespread wet weather and cold conditions resulted in lower clearance rates, with reduced purchasing across almost all regions.

Regional clearance rate trends:

Regional clearance rates were down overall, with eight of the top ten regions with the highest clearance rates trending lower than the corresponding quarter in 2021 (Table 3). Queensland regions recorded the highest clearance rates for the quarter, with three of the states four listing regions ranking in the top ten for clearance rates - despite declining considerably against year-ago levels.