Mart managers continue to report upward momentum in the store lamb trade.

A significant percentage of good-quality lowland store lambs are trading within a price range of €3.50/kg to €3.70/kg.

Select lots of top-quality lambs with a nice cover of flesh and capable of finishing relatively quickly are selling in cases to €3.80/kg, with odd pens generating a bidding war topping this price.

Plainer-quality - and in cases crossbred-type lambs - are trading back to €3.30/kg, while the trade for light continental-bred lambs is very variable depending on quality.

Some good-quality crossbred types without horns are achieving prices similar to lowland types, while very light lambs with signs of growth being stunted are selling back under €3/kg.

Hill types are trading from under €2.50/kg to upwards of €3/kg for forward-type lambs capable of easily hitting French market carcase weight.

The trade for finished lambs has firmed by €1 to €2/head, with some variation between marts depending on the type of lamb on offer and the buyer profile.

At the top end of the market, fleshed lambs weighing upwards of 50kg to 52kg are trading from €170 to €177, with select lots boosted by butcher-buyer interest hitting €180 and higher.

Heavier lambs with lower slaughter performance potential and killing at lighter carcase weight are trading back to the mid-€160s.

Interest in fleshed lambs at lighter weights is also strong, with top prices for lambs weighing around the 45kg mark rising to and exceeding €150/head with the general run from €140 to €147.

Hogget entries are now at a low level, with demand remaining strong.

Medium-weight nice-quality hoggets are trading from €180 to €230, with lighter lots that will likely remain small selling back to €150/head.

Demand for cull ewes looks sharper, with fleshed ewes averaging from €1.90/kg to €2.10/kg.

Feeding ewes are selling from €1.50/kg to €1.70/kg, with hill ewes back to €1/kg to €1.30/kg.