The store lamb trade has been much sharper in the last two weeks, with light lambs in particular recording a significant jump in prices paid.

Nice-quality short-keep stores weighing around the 40kg mark are selling on average from €3.30/kg to €3.50/kg, with lambs with a good cover of flesh exceeding this range and plainer-quality lots back to €3.10/kg to €3.20/kg.

It is a similar story for lighter lowland lambs, with prices ranging anywhere from €3.10/kg to €3.60/kg and hitting higher where two farmers become embroiled in a bidding war or the batch contains nice-quality ewe lambs.

Demand for hill types have also strengthened considerably. The keenest demand here is for shorter-keep and well-grown stores, with the best-quality lots selling from €2.80/kg to upwards of €3/kg, while light plainer-quality lambs with poorer conformation are selling back to €2.50/kg and under.

The trade for finished lambs is much sharper, with mart managers reporting prices firming by €3 to €5/head and in cases rising by up to €8 to €10/head for butcher-type lambs.

This was evident in Kilkenny Mart, where butcher-type lambs sold from €180 to €195 and recorded a top price of €200/head.

The general run of heavier lambs weighing 50kg to 54kg range from €165 to €174, with increased-quality lots and heavy ewe lambs attracting farmer buyer attention rising to €180.

Agents are keen for fleshed lambs, with the trade also helped by live export interest. Good-quality fleshed lambs weighing 45kg to 47kg are trading from €148 to €160, with the best-quality types topping this.

Ewe hoggets are finishing the season strongly, with prices €15 to €20 stronger than earlier in the season. Light- and average-quality hoggets are trading from €145 to €185, with medium-weight lots from €180 to €230 and top-quality lots rising to €280 to €300, although numbers are very scarce.

The cull ewe trade is steady to firmer, with fleshed ewes from €1.90/kg to upwards of €2/kg. Feeding ewes range from €1.60/kg to €1.85/kg with hill types back to €1/kg to €1.20/kg for light carcase ewes.