AUSTRALIAN cattle exports for the first seven months of 2024 are running 21 percent higher than during the same period last year, export data from the Department of Agriculture shows.

Trade figures released today for July 2024 show 76,545 cattle were exported from Australia for the month, which is about 15 percent above the rolling five year average for July.

That volume took overall cattle exports for the year to 434,668 head, 21 percent above the 359,031 exported in the same period of 2023.

Exports to Indonesia dominated shipments in July, with 54,875 head shipped during the month, which was 52 percent the July five year average.

Shipments to Indonesia were mainly from Darwin (37,939 head), followed by Townsville (6197), Broome (6424) and Wyndham (3295), while 1020 breeder cattle were also shipped to Indonesia from Portland in Victoria.

Shipments to Vietnam totalled 14,860 head, 22 percent below the five year average for July, with cattle primarily loaded Townsville (10,420 head) followed by Darwin (2445) and Broome (1995).

Total shipments for the month were rounded out with 3690 breeder cattle exported from Portland to China and 3120 head exported to the Philippines, comprising 2995 feeder cattle shipped from Broome and 125 breeding cattle air-freighted from Sydney.