THE economy may well be in recovery mode, if early results from Melbourne's premier yearling Thoroughbred sale this week are anything to go by.
The opening Inglis autumn yearling sale at Oaklands on Monday grossed more than $9 million - $2 million better than last year.From an offering of 170 yearlings, 126 sold, for an average of $71,488.
The top-priced yearling was a grey colt by Exceed And Excel, which sold for $300,000 to Mick Price and Blue Sky Thoroughbreds.
Australia's racing enthusiasts were forced to dig deeper into their pockets following increased buyer competition from Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Africa.
Monday's clearance of 74 per cent "has been comparable to the sales conducted so far this year," according to Inglis Bloodstock director Peter Heagney.
"The rise in average is exceptional but there is still a lot of selling ahead of us," he said.
The sales wind up tomorrow.
