Buyers were able to pull back lamb prices last week as bigger yardings were offered at major selling centres in the south.
Price averages for both trade and heavy export lambs clung to average rates of 690-740 cents a kilogram carcase weight.
This is keeping averages around $185 a head for quality sucker lambs weighing 22-24kg cwt.
Almost 19,000 lambs were yarded at Hamilton last Wednesday, while NSW markets of Wagga Wagga and Griffith offered only 27,500 between the two sales, as supplies begin to taper off.
Southern lambs are starting to build in numbers, with Ballarat last week edging closer to the 30,000 mark.
However, bidding at saleyards has waned with price changes of 48c/kg cwt for the rolling four-week average.
On a week-to-week basis trade lamb prices dipped 15c/kg, historically a common theme as numbers increase.
At the close of trade last week the national price average for heavy lambs was listed at 737c/kg.
This price is still 29c/kg higher than a year ago, according to the National Livestock Reporting Service.
When data is broken down by region, the north is recording better results with NSW price averages trending about 25c/kg higher due to the reduced numbers of good quality trade lambs.
In dollar per head terms, heavy new season lambs 30kg cwt remain in the range of $220-$250 for both NSW and Victoria.
Processors are reporting further decreases for skin values with returns of between $2.50 and $4 for pelts off heavy lambs.
Increasing numbers of young lambs caused saleyard prices to ease further in early trade this week.
But the market is also behaving erratically, with some buyers prepared to push the price on well finished types, while others are walking away.
At Bendigo numbers lifted to 18,750 lambs and 14,560 sheep with quality mostly good.
The general rule is that fresh lambs 22-24kg hit 722c/kg cwt while dryer types dipped to 646c/kg.
Overall trade prices averaged $4 to $8 lower.
The best of the heavy and extra heavy lambs were unchanged to slightly softer in places.
Sales above $220 were limited and only applied to lambs weighing more than 30kg cwt.
Lambs weighing 30kg plus sold from $208-$228 to average 676c/kg cwt.
Lamb numbers at Ballarat lifted by more than 2000 head in a yarding of 30,450.
Lamb prices averaged $4 to $10 easier in a fluctuating sale.
The market opened solidly before competition tapered off, in a sign the market is still to find a floor price after earlier spring price corrections.
The main drafts of trade lambs averaged 706c/kg cwt, while heavy lambs sat around 709c/kg to record a top price of $226.
