These June-August 2023 drop Merino wether lambs weighing 38.1kg lwt at Brewarrina in NSW sold for $84 on AuctionsPlus last week.

AUCTIONSPLUS commercial sheep and lamb listings jumped 37 percent to 54,396 head last week, in the first full week back after Easter.

The increased throughput met with price increases in some lamb and ewe categories – including a 103c/kg bump to 565c/kg for the AuctionsPlus restocker indicator and a 2 percent increase to $125 for the crossbred lamb indicator.

There was an 8 percent fall in the overall clearance rate to 63pc, and Value Over Reserve rose fell by $3 to average $7 across all listings.

Lambs made up a significant portion of the increased yarding this week, with crossbred and Merino wether lambs making up the bulk of the offering.

In the ewe categories, joined first cross ewes were a stand-out, with a 1144pc increase in throughput and a $19/head increase in the average price, with a 51pc clearance rate. The average price of joined shedding breed ewes dropped $39 for a 25pc clearance, and the average price scanned in-lamb composite/other breed ewes fell $25, but all were sold.

Listings were up in all states including Tasmania, which re-entered the market with 320 head offered. South Australia more than doubled its offering to 9189 head and NSW had the highest numbers, offering more than 30,000 head. New South Wales buyers, on the back of rain in the past two weeks, purchased more than 20,000 head. Buyer activity in Queensland slumped to just 900 head, down 2730. Western Australian buyers stepped back into the market to take a healthy 670 head for the week.

Processors were not active in the online market for the third week in a row.

The offering of crossbred lambs ;lifted 62pc to 10,857 head, with a $3 jump in the price to average $125. At Condah in Victoria, 380 mixed sex August-September 2023 drop Poll Dorset cross lambs weighing 46kg lwt sold for $152, or 328c/kg to a buyer in Melton, Victoria.

The number of Merino wether lambs lifted 63pc to 12,850, but the price remained unchanged. At Hay in NSW, 625 June-July 2023 drop Poll Merino wether lambs weighing 40kg lwt, sold for $107, or 268c/kg, to a buyer in Deniliquin, NSW.

The scanned in-lamb composite/other breed ewe offering dropped 62pc to 1152 head. Prices were also down by $25/head to record an average price of $130; however, the clearance rate was 100pc.

Note: Prices as at 5pm Thursday, 11th April 2024.

Source – AuctionsPlus.