Too many held lambs for the pre-Christmas trade

WITH lamb supplies beginning to increase, prospects of stronger trading before Christmas look less likely.

In the marts, bigger numbers have led to prices falling back 3/head this week.

Factories opened the week with largely unchanged quotes but some added up to 5 cent/kg (2p/lb) on Tuesday. Quotes ranged from 342 back to 331 cent/kg (122 to 118p/lb). Supplies are building as producers who held back to benefit from the pre-Christmas trade move stock more freely. An increased supply of Irish lamb to France during the week led to quieter trading, at prices from 350 to 355 cent/kg (125p to -127p/lb).