These rising two year-old Manunda blood Poll Merino ewes sold for $332 at Nyngan, NSW, last week.

CLEARANCE rates for AuctionsPlus sheep and lamb offerings were again boosted by post-sale negotiations last week.

AuctionsPlus said it offered 87,272 sheep and lambs last week, representing a drop for the second consecutive week, by 20 percent less than the previous week.

Following the immediate conclusion of regular commercial sheep and lamb sales on Tuesday, clearance rates were some of the lowest registered for 2022, AuctionsPlus said. However, extensive post-sale negotiations in the days following the auction boosted clearance rates significantly across joined ewe and lamb categories.

AuctionsPlus said the signs of a “seasonal stand-off” are strengthening, with a large volume of sales following the auction indicative of disparity between initial buyer and seller price points. The updated sale results at the end of the week provided a clearer sense of where the market prices lie, with many vendors reducing their reserves to lock in a sale, the online platform said.

Selective buying remained prominent across the joined and unjoined ewe categories. However, several categories made considerable gains on last week, highlighting the comparative resilient sentiment of restockers, particularly those sourcing quality lines of breeding ewes.

Lambs accounted for 44pc of the total offering last week, with a total of 38,250 head offered across the six categories, with prices for three categories averaging higher week-on-week.

There were 9919 crossbred lambs offered and those sold averaged $154/head, up $3. Following the close of Tuesdays’ lamb auction, clearance rates were only at 30pc for the category. However, post-sale negotiations boosted clearances to 61pc by Thursday afternoon.

In the offering of 13,350 Merino wether lambs — the largest lamb category and 15pc of total listings — prices ranged from $104-$157 to average $126, back $8. Clearance rates for the wether lambs increased from 30pc on Tuesday to 70pc after 48 hours, dropping the overall average price for the week. A line of 860 lambs weighing 40.7kg liveweight at Thallon in Queensland made $130.

Merino ewe lambs registered the highest clearance across all sheep and lamb categories this week, hitting 86pc. Prices for the 2054 head offered averaged kick $30 higher at $183.

The final clearance for the 7430 first cross ewe lambs was 55pc, up from 29pc on Tuesday. Prices for ranged from $169-$287 and averaged $224, up $3.

The 26,804 joined ewes listed accounted for 30pc of the total catalogue. Scanned in-lamb Merino ewes had the largest offering of 12,934 head. Demand improved on the previous week, with the category reaching a clearance of 66pc by Thursday, up from 47pc at the close of Tuesday’s auctions. Prices ranged broadly in line with quality, at $121-$332, to average $232, back $4. Topping the category were 600 two year-old ewes weighing 63kg liveweight sold in three even lines at Nyngan, NSW.

Scanned in-lamb first cross ewes averaged $278, up $23. Clearance rates for the category also rose significantly throughout the week; up from only 11pc post-sale on Tuesday to 53pc by late Thursday for the 3322 head offered.

Station-mated shedding breed ewes returned the highest clearance across the joined ewe categories of 78pc, and averaged $11 higher at $288/head. A highlight for the category included 169 16-19 month-old ewe hoggets weighing 77kg at Deniliquin NSW, that made $372/head.

NOTE: Prices as at 5pm, Thursday 24th March 2022.