Lamb Prices
Suffer Some
Sharp Losses

Lamb prices both up and down the pipe were jolted again this week with losses mostly over $5 and frequently off as much as $10. This the second week in a row prices have dropped sharply. A little strength was noted late on fat lambs, and slaughter ewes held steady to a little higher.

Slaughter lamb prices again suffered from a lack of interest in lamb pelts. Pelt buyers were waiting for the European market to settle. Lamb killers protected their profits by reducing live prices to mostly around the $70 figure. A ripple effect took feeder lambs back into the neighborhood below $80.

A sharp increase in imported lamb last week to 2.08 million pounds, or the equivalent of 52 percent of domestic production, didn’t help the situation, especially since the import carcasses are of the lightweight kind that is on the depressed side of the market. Lamb cuts were about steady this week with some strength on legs.

The loss last month of the John Morell plant, a mid-size lamb slaughtering facility in the Midwest, was another blow to the industry.

Colorado feedlots are filling up and lambs coming off the Rocky Mountain slopes this month appeare to be looking for a home in Texas feedlots.

Apparently the freeze of the Australian wool stockpile has melted and it’s back to business as usual. Only 1.1 million bales remain in the stockpile. As one wool trader quipped, the stockpile would make good fuel for the Olympic bonfire in Sydney in the year 2000.

Feeder lambs in San Angelo weighing 40-60 pounds brought $73-84, 60-80 pounds $72-79 and 80-100 pounds $71-75.50. Fredericksburg feeders were mostly $73-80, and Goldthwaite called 55-85 pound lambs $72-80. Feeder lambs in Midwest markets weighing 55-80 pounds were $73-78, 80-100 pounds $68-73.

Feeder lambs moving direct in West Texas were mostly $68-70 on 80-100 pounds and 75-79 on 65-75 pounds. Recent sales in Wyoming had 105 pound feeders at $72, a few $65-66. Montana lambs weighing 90-100 pounds brought $72-73.50, Utah feeders of 90-105 pounds $67-70. Washington had 90 pound feeders going for $66, and Oregon sold 110 pound mixed fat and feeder lambs at $70.

Slaughter lambs in San Angelo weighing 100-140 pounds brought $69-73.50, 85-140 pound lambs at Goldthwaite $65-75. Midwest markets moved fats weighing 100-110 pounds at $68-70, 110-120 pounds $64-72 and 120-140 pounds $66-74, a few to $78 Wednesday.

Recent sales of fat lambs moving direct to packers saw Colorado lambs scaling 125-135 pounds $81, Wyoming lambs $84. In Oregon lambs weighing 125-130 pounds were $73, and Washington had fats at $72. California received $74 on 110-135 pound fats. Midwest lambs moving direct at 105-115 pounds $69-71 and 120-130 pounds $74-78.

Fleshy slaughter ewes in San Angelo brought $29-44, those in the Midwest $20-24. Exports to Mexico came to 4219 ewes last week.

Babytooth stock ewes in San Angelo sold for $46-52.50 per head.