CVLX Ballarat Sheep Report

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Report Date: 8th July 2025

Total Yarding: 15,832

Commentary

Lamb supply dropped, quality dropped, but prices kept going to create a dearer market in cents per kilogram price terms. Just 10416 lambs were yarded to be down nearly 5000 on a week ago, and a big percentage of the offering was lighter wintery types weighing under 20kg cwt. Showing how quickly weight and condition declined, prices in the opening laneway went from $400 to under $200/head in just six pens. It meant trade and export competition on the smaller pool of quality slaughter lambs intensified, and the broad price range in this sale was 1100c to 1300c/kg cwt to end up at averages of 1130c to 1250c/kg cwt on the better processing grades. The strongest results were early in the market with demand then settling a bit as some buyers dropped off the pace. The lighter grades of lambs mostly 900c to 1100c/kg cwt depending on quality and fat cover.

Pens of heavy export lambs were limited and sold from $360 to $430/head. The heavy 26-30kg cwt lambs benefitted from domestic competition at times and there was some very strong results at $330 to $380/head – this section having some of the 1300c/kg rates. The pick of the heavy trade lambs $280 to $328/head, followed by the main run of 22-24kg cwt lambs at $250 to $314/head. There was a lot of mixed light lambs in each agents run, the better bred and presented types $150 to $220/head and secondary and very small lambs from $55 to $140/head.

Sheep supply remained similar at 5416 head and was again dominated by ewes in light score 1 and 2 condition. The few pens of extra heavy ewes were cheaper with exporters not chasing the market at $200 to $240/head regardless of weight. Middle run of trade sheep with frame and fat cover mostly $150 to $210/head. Underneath this was a lot of very light ewes at $60 to $145/head. The estimated rate for most mutton was 640c to 750c/kg cwt.

Market reporter: Jenny Kelly