Merino Fleece was dominated by the Australian based and Chinese traders and also Chinese indent operators with continuing strong bullish demand for 19 to 22µ.
The inclusion of an inspection day of the Trigger Vale ram sale calendar has come at the expense of the stud's biannual information day which have been so well attended over the past 20 years.
Merino Fleece opened positively driven by a more stylish, better specified selection with superfine lots keenly sought adding 25c for the week whilst the 17.5-18.5 MPG’s pushing up 40-62c with the Certified Non Mulesed fleece lots at time making premiums well over the daily quotes.
The largest lamb category for the week was crossbreds, with 15,928 head offered. The 55% clearance rate at the immediate conclusion of Tuesdays sale, lifted to 69%, as prices averaged $6 higher on the previous week, at $147/head.
Merino Fleece opened on a tentative note with all MPG’s posting losses of 3-15c in the northern markets and at times, double that in the Southern and Western markets.
Merino Fleece opened slightly cheaper with the low VM types attracting good buyer support, whilst the heavy VM lots with lesser style, containing colour and cotted bore the brunt of heavier losses on both days.
This year, for the 58th edition of the prestigious program, the Ermenegildo Zegna Group celebrated its award ceremony alongside the ASWGA’s 50th anniversary in the foundation’s birthplace of Ararat.
Lamb producers can expect to see prices climbing into the spring to hit a high of 1000-1050ckg as the Aussie protein continues to be the new Wagyu in the US.
Industry benchmarking is enabling sheep bred using Soft Rolling Skin technology to quantify their superior wool traits off the back of Merino sire evaluation trials in four states.
Merino Fleece experienced better support from the opening lots, with price rises measured in the MPG’s between 0 and 19c by the markets close on Tuesday, with the largest rises measured in the 16-18 MPG’s.