This week's auction provided what many industry members were hoping for, a solid week in which prices were consolidated.

The national quantity rose to 30,135 bales, however compared to this time last year, the offering is down by 21.4%, or 73,762 bales.

The Melbourne market rose rapidly on the second selling day of the previous sale, so much so that the levels being achieved were well above those of the other centres.

For this reason, the Melbourne sale recorded losses on the first day this week, bringing prices more into line with Sydney and Fremantle.

The Southern market indicator fell by 22 cents on the back of these losses.

The Sydney region did not sell on the final day of the previous week, due to this fact, prices needed to rise to come into line with Melbourne and Fremantle.

On the first day of selling in Sydney, the individual Micron Price Guides (MPGs) generally rose by 35 to 55 cents.

This pushed the Northern region indicator up by 22 cents.

With one centre up and the other down, the was a minimal change in the AWEX Eastern Market Indicator (EMI) of 4 cents.

The second day the MPGs in all centres rose, generally by 5 to 15 cents.

These increases helped push the EMI up by 11 cents.

The (EMI) added 7 cents for the series, closing the week at 1,542 cents.

Due to currency movement when viewed in USD, the EMI fell by 9 USc.

The skirting market attracted strong competition, pushing prices up by 30 to 50 cents, making the skirtings the best performing sector for the week.

The National quantity reduces slightly for the following week.

Currently, there is 29,290 bales available to the trade, with all three centres in operation.

For more information, visit www.awex.com.au