The moves by factories to reduce base quotes have also been felt in the live trade, with factory agents keen for lambs but not willing to compete to the same intensity.
Blessington Mart’s sheep sale on Tuesday witnessed an easier trade for lambs, but cull ewes remained solid, with fleshed ewes averaging €2.40/kg.
A significant percentage of the cull ewe entry comprised individual or small lots, which shows that farmers are taking advantage of the strong prices and any ewes which experience any issues are not being given a second chance.
A handful of large-framed ewes topping 90kg sold from €2.37/kg to €2.67/kg, with a top price of €296 paid for a 110kg ewe.
Ewes weighing 84kg to 90kg sold from €2.40/kg to €2.62/kg, while lighter lots weighing from 70kg to 79kg sold in the main from €2.25/kg to €2.65/kg.
Smaller-framed ewes weighing 60kg to 70kg sold from €2.20/kg to €2.5/kg, with a few lots lacking flesh cover back to €1.70/kg to €1.90/kg.
A number of heavy rams weighing from 123kg to 135kg sold from €230 to €234 (€1.73/kg to €1.87/kg), with lighter lots weighing from 90kg to 100kg selling from €194 to €214 (€2.09/kg to €2.18/kg.
Lamb trade
Lamb prices were €5 to €8 per head easier compared with the previous week.
Heavier lambs weighing 49kg to 52kg sold on average from €207 to €212, with a top price of €216 paid for lambs weighing 62kg.
Lambs weighing from 44kg to 36kg sold mainly from €193 to €200.
The general run of lambs weighing 42kg to 43kg was from €173 to €180, with a standout batch of 17 lambs weighing 43kg hitting €191 per head.
The number of lambs weighing less than 40kg on offer is slowly increasing, with some batches of well-presented stores.
The trade for lambs falling just below the 40kg mark and weighing from 38kg to 39kg was heavily dependent on flesh cover and slaughter suitability.
A batch of fleshed lambs weighing 39kg sold for €172 per head, while store types sold from €140 to €158.
Lambs weighing from 33kg to 35kg sold from €117 to €134 or a price per kilo ranging from €3.55/kg to €3.94/kg and averaging around the €3.70/kg mark.
Cattle sales are seasonally low, but last week’s trade was improved for all types. Angus-cross and Hereford-cross stores sold from €950 to €1,500 with the weight, with a better appetite also seen for slaughter-fit cattle and cows. Continental store bullocks are low in number with higher competition pushing prices above €4/kg and to €1,780 with the weight.
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