The hogget trade in marts this week has been much sharper, with prices increasing anywhere from €3/head to upwards of €6/head.

Mart managers report agents being much more willing to compete and doing all they can not to let any sheep return home unsold.

Prices for heavier hoggets have in many sales reverted back, or close to, the levels witnessed before the recent price pressure.

Quality hoggets weighing upwards of 53kg to 55kg have recorded prices ranging from €115 to €223, with infrequent reports of hoggets hitting €225 or higher.

Lambs weighing around the 50kg mark range from €200 to upwards of €210, with quality and potential slaughter performance a key determinant.

Likewise, lighter lots weighing 48kg to 49kg are ranging from the low €190s to mid-€200s, with some lots lacking significant flesh cover back to the mid-€180s.

Factory agents have also been active for lighter-fleshed hoggets weighing in the region of 44kg to 45kg, with prices topping €4/kg and rising to the mid-€180s for the best-quality types.

The renewed appetite for slaughter-fit hoggets is giving store hogget buyers more courage, with lowland types ranging from €4/kg to as high as €4.30/kg, while hill types and plainer-quality lots very short on flesh cover are selling from €3.30/kg to €3.50/kg upwards.

The cull ewe trade is also vibrant, with good-quality fleshed lowland ewes selling from €2.30/kg to €2.65/kg in the main.

Select lots of ewes with superior conformation are exceeding this price range.

Crossbred ewes and ewes with a lower flesh cover range from €1.85/kg to €2.20/kg, with fleshed hill ewes from €1.40/kg to €1.60/kg and upwards for heavier carcase ewes.

The trade for in-lamb ewes is unchanged. A significant percentage of third and fourth ewes carrying 1.5 to 1.8 lambs are from €270 to €300, with large-framed and younger ewes to €330. Single lamb lots range from €220 to €250 for older type and smaller-framed sheep with small numbers of young sheep matching prices paid for twin-lamb lots.