The annual show and sale of ewe lambs at Aghanloo, Co Derry, sold to a top price of £169 (€194) on Tuesday.
The highest-priced lot was a pen of well-presented Greyface ewe lambs bred by Eugene and Eoghan Lagan from Drumsurn.
In the show before the sale, Arnold and Brian Douglas took first place in the Greyface competition with a pen of ewe lambs which later sold for £155 (€178).
The Limavady men also had the prizewinning pen of Mule ewe lambs, which fetched £150 (€172) at the sale. In the Suffolk Cheviot show, Raymond Canning from Drumsurn took first place with a pen of ewe lambs that made £150 (€172) in the sales ring. Auctioneers Robert and Alexander Gourley sold over 2,000 ewe lambs, although the trade was back from the record prices seen in 2021. Average prices were between £5 to £15 (€6 to €17)lower than last year.
The best ewe lambs made £130 (€149) and more on the day, although the run of lots sold for £115 to £125 (€132 to €143). Plainer sheep sold for around £110 (€126) and pens of smaller ewe lambs were available for £100 (€115) and less.
Blackface hoggets were sold first, with the top pen making £182 (€209). However, demand quickly dropped and most sold for £110 (€126) to £130 (€149).