Trading resumed at Castlerea Mart on Thursday last, June 11, with bids accepted both from ringside and online.

Brendan Egan, the mart manager, said: “In ring three, calves and runners reported a good trade, while cows with calves at foot were in strong demand; prices topped out at €2,010/unit.”

Brendan noted that dry cows were entered in numbers and met a good demand, with prices exceeding €2.00/kg in some cases.

Following the trend that is evident in a lot of marts south of the border, there was plenty of Northern Irish buyer interest which boosted demand for heifer lots.

“In the heifer and weanling heifer rings, demand was firm with renewed Northern Irish interest, but quality was still a major factor in prices.

“Store heifers peaked at €2.62/kg, weanling heifer lots hit €3.31/kg,” Brendan added.

Furthermore, cows with calves at foot made €1,030-2,010/unit, with springers selling from €950/head to €1,260/head.

Moving to the calf ring, young calves made from €150/head to €350/head, while runners made €350-580/head.