By Neale McQuistin
Lawrie and Symington Ltd sold 26 prime and 49 cast cattle at Lanark yesterday.
Prime heifers sold to 248p/kg or £1500. Cast beef cows peaked at £1,365 and 173p/kg, while cast dairy cattle sold to £825 and 117p.
A smaller show of 2,053 prime hoggets, due to the wintery conditions and larger numbers sold pre-Christmas, saw the dearest trade so far this season. The sale was topped at £136 and 318p/kg for Beltex to average 241p overall.
A smaller show of 969 cast ewes were a good show for strength and quality with all classes remaining dear. The sale peaked at £198 for Texels and at £79 for Blackfaces.
Harrison & Hetherington Ltd sold 49 clean cattle, 34 cast cows, 674 prime lambs and 228 cast sheep at St Boswells yesterday. Clean cattle met a strong trade which was particularly fierce for cattle that were handy weights.
Eight prime bullocks sold to 242p/kg and averaged 218p (n/c), while 41 prime heifers peaked at 247p to average 225p (+5p).
Cast cows sold to £1492 and 199p on two occasions to average 142p (+1p).
Prime hoggets sold to £120 and 269p/kg for Beltex lambs to average 233p (+11p) or £104 (+£10) overall. Heavy cast ewes sold to a top of £147 for Texel ewes and averaged £104 (+£16), while light ewes peaked at £117 for Cheviots and averaged £74 (-£3).
The firm also sold 13 prime heifers at Carlisle yesterday which peaked at 246p/kg and levelled at 209p (+20p), while 12 beef-bred bullocks sold to 235p and levelled at 212p (+11p). Three dairy-bred prime bullocks sold to 165p and averaged 162p.
Twenty-nine young beef-bred bulls peaked at 236p and averaged 198p (-11p), while 18 dairy-bred young bulls sold to 185p and levelled at 163p (-35p).
In the rough ring 100 cast dairy cows sold to 156p to average 106p (+5p), while 26 cast beef cows peaked at 208p to average 135p (+8p). Four cast bulls sold to 146p/kg and averaged 116p.
A smaller show of 1,081 prime lambs this week sold to £128 and 310p/kg to average 244p/kg (+6p). In the cast sheep section 51 heavy ewes peaked at £140 for a Beltex and averaged £99 (-£7), while 15 hill ewes were topped at £56 or a Swaledale and averaged £47 (+£8).
Messrs Craig Wilson Ltd sold 850 prime hoggets and 196 cast sheep at Ayr yesterday. A small show of prime hoggets met a firm trade to average 240p/kg. The sale was topped by Beltex selling for £123 or 280p.
Cast sheep continued the theme of last week with numbers tight and trade good. Ewes peaked at £139 for Texel crosses, while Blackface ewes sold to £72.
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