Prime lambs - 1406: A slight improvement to 148.3p but it is very noticeable that non-farm assured supermarket weight lambs are suffering as the supermarkets will not buy them, on the other hand the premium for the best lambs gets far greater every week with the best at 171.8p, 170.7p, 170p, 168.9p, 166.7p, 164.8p. Quality counts every time.

Breeding ewes - 277: Smaller entry but customers still looking for harder bred sorts. Bunches of Speckle two year old ewes sold at £80, with yearlings at £76. A draft of hard bred Suffolk cross twos, threes and fours ranged from £66 to £69. The few lowland ewes included Suffolk cross two year olds at £119. Yearlings from £75 to £82. Next week's entry to include 130 Welsh Mule three and four year olds (vendor lost the grazing). Ewes have been with Suffolk and Charollais rams from 1st September (50) and 1st October (80).

Store lambs - 4398: A very similar entry of lambs met a very fast trade throughout. A large number of men from west, north and south Wales and throughout the midlands. Trade generally £1-£2 dearer on the week on all lambs except the strongest with current prime trade leaving some men a little short of confidence. The strongest lambs to £61.20 with strongest bunches £57 to £60. Good farming lambs £54 to £56.80 and look very well sold. Medium keep lambs from £50 to £53.80. Mule wethers to £57.50, other stronger sorts £50 to £54.50, smaller lambs £46 to £50. Well bred long keep lambs from £45 to £49.50, harder bred and smaller sorts sharper on the week from £40 to £44.50. Very small and plain lambs from £32 to £39.50.

Ram lambs to £57, other stronger bunches from £52 to £55.50. Smaller sorts from £47 to £51.50. Hill bred lambs from £40 to £46.50 depending on condition. Very plain types from £34.50 to £39.50.

The ewe lambs sold to a lot less customers and generally were quite a bit less money. A bunch of strong Suffolk cross North Country Mule ewe lambs caught the eye and topped at £96. A pen of pure Charollais to £89. A larger selection of mainly smaller Welsh Mules - these topped at £75, others to £71, with most from £60 to £68. Suffolk cross Mules to £71.50, other sorts from £65 to £71. Texel cross Mules to £72, other stronger, smarter headed sorts from £65 to £70. Smaller sorts of all breeds only sold for feeding money and would be better sold as a bunch of mixed feeding lambs.

Cull ewes - 1578: A reasonable entry sold to a lot faster trade than last week. Whilst the ewe average is something similar there would be more plainer ewes forward. Ewes topped at £128.50/head. All types dearer and certainly more spark to the trade, with top 20 prices in excess of £92/head. Again do not get your ewes over-fat, the lean types are dearer with more demand. Rams a slightly better trade topping at £120/head with several others clipping the £100 mark. More ewes required next week.

Average £/head - £60.10, Continental £128.50, Suffolks £99.50, North Country Mules £83, Welsh Mules £78, Speckles £63, Welsh £70, Cull Rams £120, Cull Wethers £90.

Rearing/weaned calves - 27: A good selection on offer with 14 chiefly British Blue cross rearing calves. Top price of £380 for a 25 day old bull from Mrs J Jones and Sons, Lower Park Farm, with four others from £350 to £370. Six British Blue cross heifer calves all sold from £215 to £310. Limousin cross bulls at £310 and Limousin cross heifers at £270. Weaned calves topped at £500 for a four and a half month Blue cross bull out of a beef cow. Three and a half month Limousin cross heifer from the same farm at £480. Dairy cross weanlings sold to £480 for a Hereford cross bull with another at £350. Limousin cross heifers, five months from £370 to £410. Friesian bulls £190 to £245. Total clearance effected.