At the end of last week, ground was lost as numbers doubled both at Wagga Wagga, NSW, and Griffith, NSW, in the Riverina.
An increase of 19,000 lambs at Wagga Wagga to a yarding of 41,000 saw most lambs trend $10 cheaper, Meat & LIvestock Australia's National Livestock Reporting Service said.
It quoted heavy and big super-sized heavy lambs back $9 to $10 on the previous week's rates.
The heaviest lambs at the centre reached $290 a head for a draft with an estimated carcase weight of 40 kilograms
The balance of the heavy export lambs sold from $198 to $238 to average 751 cents a kilogram cwt.
Magnificent big, heavy Merino lambs weighing from 30kg to 35kg and carrying a $15 skin sold from $255 to $276 to average 771c/kg cwt.
Trade lambs were mixed, and neat shorter-skinned lambs held their value best, with prices increasing as the sale progressed.
The bulk of the 22kg to 24kg lambs sold at $183 to $219 to average 841c/kg cwt.
There is still good demand for restocking lambs which averaged $176 each.
Mutton prices were unchanged and trended slightly softer with heavy mutton averaging 600c/kg to 644c/kg cwt.
Sheep with less fat cover sold to strong demand making from $130-$174.
This week in opening markets, demand for good processing sheep ran ahead of supply.
Price gains of $20 to $30 were recorded for ewes and wethers at major selling saleyards with carcase weight mutton selling within 1kg of heavy lamb prices.
Mutton was the highlight at both the Bendigo and Corowa, NSW, saleyards earlier this week, with NLRS reporting much dearer results at both selling centres.
Big, crossbred ewes sold to $259 at Bendigo with many heavy sheep making from $194 to $243.
Merino wethers surged back to more than 700c/kg, with good lines of heavy mutton averaging out at 660c/kg cwt.
Trade ewes jumped $10 to average 683c/kg cwt.
Mutton was at an average of 661c/kg on Monday night, to rest 21c/kg dearer compared to Friday.
The mutton indicator is now 6c/kg lower than the same time in June 2020.
The lamb market at Bendigo performed on quality, with buyers still prepared to support the best shorn lambs still in fresh condition.
However, buyers pulled back on plainer types presenting longer wool and dry skins
The result was firm to $4 cheaper with 22kg to 24kg lambs selling from $169 to $205 to average 818c/kg cwt.
Heavy lambs were unchanged to $12 dearer to average 779c/kg cwt.
The smaller offering of 5100 sheep at Ballarat impacted prices, with trade sheep $8 dearer while heavy mutton was unchanged and averaged 678c/kg cwt.
- Leann Dax is an NLRS market reporter.