Figures down but Book 1 results not all doom and gloom

By the time the final lot had exited the ring on Thursday, the latest edition of Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale had, after three days of high-octane trade, produced a solid-looking set of figures.

Some 483 yearlings were offered (27 more than in 2018), of which 397 found a buyer for a clearance rate of 82 per cent, down from 86 per cent 12 months ago, when 392 lots sold.

There were similar decreases across the spread of market metrics. The aggregate stood at 102,429,000gns, down four per cent year on year; the average was 258,010gns, down five per cent; while the median took the biggest slide, down ten per cent to 150,000gns, having finished at 167,500gns 12 months ago.