Marts: While the upward trend in beef prices has been maintained, the pace of the increase has eased at the factories where average prices improved by 1-2c/kg last week.

Marts: The upward trend in beef prices is continuing, adding a further 3c-4c/kg to the average being paid for stock by the factories.

Marts: Factories paid 5c-7c/kg (2p/lb) more for cattle, under pressure to get sufficient stock last week, as producers held out for higher returns before parting with animals.

Marts: THE upward trend in beef prices has been maintained with gains of 4c-5c/kg (2p/lb) in the average price paid by the factories for stock for last weeks kill.

Marts: An increase of 7c/kg (2p/lb) in the average price being paid by the factories for cattle has maintained the strong upward trend in returns for producers.

Marts: Beef prices have dropped by an average of 3c/kg (1p/lb) at the factories after resistance from producers succeeded in holding returns above the quoted rates by the processors, with some of the 38,701 kill last week bought forward at the previous week’s prices.

Downward pressure on beef prices is being led by the country’s largest beef processing groups, according to the officially compiled returns from the factories. Average prices have slipped by 1c/kg for R4L bullocks.

Marts: A majority of the beef factories paid more for beef — despite a strong increase in the supply — for last week’s kill, underpinning confidence in a stable trade.

Marts: Four AIBP factories are among 10 plants countrywide which have increased prices by up to 3c/kg (1p/lb) as the intake at the factories tightens further.

BEEF prices have dropped by an average of 1c-2c/kg at the factories as the supply of cattle is maintained well above average for August. However, but the actual price paid held 3c-6c/kg (1p-2p/lb) higher than the officially quoted rates by the processors.

Marts: Such has been the demand for cattle at the factories over the past week that an increase of over 4,000 in the supply of bullocks failed to deter the average price gaining a further 1 cent/kg — the third consecutive week of price gains.

Marts: Beef prices increased by an average of 3c/kg (1p/lb), while individual factories paid up to 6c/kg (2p/lb) more for cattle, despite an upward trend in supplies for last week.

Marts: The decline in average beef prices at the factories has almost bottomed out, as the intake of cattle shows the first signs of shrinking but the factories continued to pay a margin of up to 3c/kg (1p/lb) over the official quotes.

Marts: Although the factories continue to pay over the quoted prices for cattle, 6c/kg (2p/lb) has now been wiped off the average price in two weeks.

Marts: Producers with R grade cattle to sell are strongly resisting factory price cuts and processors are paying significantly more than the quoted prices for their supplies.

Marts: Resistance from producers to the lower prices being quoted by the factories for cattle and a carryover of stock bought forward at higher prices sustained prices at an average of at least 6c/kg (2p/lb) over the quoted rates last week.

The intake of bullocks dropped by 2,500 head after factories reduced prices by up to 6c/kg (2p/lb) last week with the heaviest losses in prices for the poorer graders.

Almost half of the factories paid less for R4L bullocks for last week's kill after a surge in supply to the highest weekly intake of bullocks in 2007 and the highest for the corresponding week since 2003.

THREE-MONTH analysis of the prices paid to farmers for beef animals shows that the margin of difference between factories for R4L bullocks was less than half of that for R4L heifers around the country.

Marts: Beef prices have made further gains to maintain parity with last year for bullocks and edge slightly higher than 2006 for heifers as the recovery of the market continues.

Marts: Stronger prices at the top of the market — for both bullocks and heifers — is the positive side of the factory returns for last week kill which provides ground for optimism by producers that the worst of the recent decline is over.

Marts: As beef prices tightened at the factories for a second week, analysis of factory averages for the first two months of 2007 show smaller factories led the field within a narrow price variation nationally.

Cow prices gained 4c/kg with up to 273c/kg being paid for R-grade cows.

As prices continued unchanged last week, returns for the first five weeks of 2007 show a narrowing of the price range for beef animals at the factories to less than 6 cents/kg (2p/lb) dividing the highest and the lowest.

There was very little movement in beef prices at most of the factories last week.

Marts: There was no change in mainstream average prices paid by the factories for cattle last week, but minor downward adjustments are showing at the top end of the market, which may be early signs of an indicator of a ceiling on returns being positioned by the processors.

Strong competition among factories for young heifers and cows has boosted prices.

Beef prices were cut by an average of 1-3c/kg at the factories as the supply of cattle to the processing plants remained high at over 40,000 head slaughtered last week.

Marts: Beef prices made further gains at the factories as the supply of cattle slaughtered reached the seasonal peak with a throughput in excess of 40,000 head.

Marts: Everything about the beef trade is positive right now for producers with a further increase in prices paid by the factories as the supply of bullocks rising.

Marts: Confidence in the beef trade has been further strengthened after another surge in the supply of cattle failed to dampen the upward trend in prices at the factories.

BEEF prices at the factories have come under increasing downward pressure with a further rise in the supply of cattle making the task easier for the processors.

HALF of the factories paid more for cattle last week (some increased by almost 3p/lb), while the balance paid the same or slightly less than the previous week as the kill surged to a three-year high.

Marts: Producer resistance to lower prices for beef is continuing to win the battle against lower quoted prices at the factories, where the changes in overall returns for last week — albeit lower — were minimal.

PRODUCERS are beginning to lose the battle with the factories on beef prices, with a majority of the processing centres reducing prices for R4L bullocks by up to 1p/lb or implementing a freeze on prices at previous level.

Marts: While a few factories increased prices for R4L bullocks by almost 3 cents/kg (1p/lb), one-in-three factories paid lower returns or maintained the previous weeks level as processors reacted to the rising trend last week.

Marts: Continuation of the gradual rise in beef prices delivered a top return of 112p/lb for bullocks and heifers at the factories last week, while a new record of 102p/lb was paid for cows.

Marts: Kildare Chilling and Kepak (Watergrasshill) increased prices by an average of 1.5p/lb to top the improvements in prices paid for R4L bullocks last week to bring the averages at the individual plants to 109.6p/lb and 108.8p/lb respectively.

PRICE swings of up to 1p/lb at factories balanced to give an overall average for R4L bullocks marginally lower for last week.