The 2024 northern cattle export year started quietly due to Indonesian import permit delays but is closing in a rush as importers move to fill feedlots ahead of the peak Ramadan/Lebaran beef consumption period in February/March next year.

Convoys of triple road trains have been transporting cattle from northern NT paddocks to the Port of Darwin, with most of the estimated 60,000 cattle stored on flood plains expected to be trucked to export quarantine depots and shipped to Indonesia by Christmas.

Frontier International Agri’s Tony Gooden said cattle coming off the flood plain this year have been in good condition and despite the end of year rush the trade is flowing well.

The busy period is expected to continue right up until the end of December, with Frontier itself scheduled to load a further three ships in Darwin between now and the end of the year.

January is then likely to be much quieter, a most importers will have largely filled their feedlots by that point.

The timing of Indonesia’s import permit release in early 2025 will be watched with interest after last year’s longer-than-expected delays, but the allocation is unlikely to trigger a new rush of cattle imports, because by that time the window to have cattle on feed to be ready for the key Ramadan/Lebaran will have closed.

Cattle exports on track to surpass 700,000 head for 2024

Latest cattle export statistics from the Department of Agriculture released this week show that Australia has exported 672,341 cattle for the year to date, almost matching last year’s total volume of 676,000 head with one month to spare.

The year-to-date total includes 414,497 cattle to Indonesia – the highest export volume to the major market since 2020 – and 115,505 head to Vietnam, which is on par with the volume shipped in the same period of 2023.

Feeder steers in Darwin are commanding prices of 350c/kg liveweight, returning to the highest point the market has reached in 2024, and about 20 percent ahead of the 290c price for feeder steers ex Darwin in December last year.