Many marts are in the full swing of breeding sales with many special or group breeding sales also taking place. Price is being influenced heavily by the quality of hoggets on offer.

At the lower end of the market, plainer-quality hoggets or lots with good breeding potential but light on condition are selling from €135 to €155. Better-quality types are selling to €180, with top-quality lots selling to a top of €190 to €200 per head. First- and second-crop ewes are selling anywhere from €120 to €170, with aged full-mouth ewes selling from €100 to €135 for large-framed fleshed ewes.

Store lambs continue to sell briskly, with numbers approaching peak entries. Good-quality lowland lambs weighing 35kg to 40kg are selling from €43 to €48 over, with the best-quality lots selling to €50 over. Short-keep stores weighing 40kg to 43kg are meeting a similar price range. Stores weighing 30kg to 35kg are selling from €2.00/kg to €2.20/kg, while hill lambs are selling from €1.80/kg to €2.10/kg.

Factory agents remain keen to source lambs but have been trying to purchase at a lower price. This has in most cases not materialised, with small numbers of factory-fit lambs keeping a floor under the trade.

Fleshed lambs weighing 45kg to 48kg are selling from €95 to €102 on average, with heavier factory lambs selling to €105 to €107 per head, rising to €110 to €112 for butcher-type lambs.

Cull ewes are unchanged, with fleshed ewes selling from €80 to €105. Feeding ewes are selling from €50 to €65 for aged, broken-mouth lowland ewes, rising to €80 for good-quality feeding ewes with an average cover of flesh.