Prices have been rising swiftly over the last two years, and this year there was a record $1.6 million sale, Mr. Carberry said.

It was also a record sale for Norwich.

Most of the July reduction came from the record $7.4 billion sale of mortgage holdings.

His record sale for a single plant was $350.

This was a record sale at the time.

The period also saw the emergence of the club's most famous player and record sale, Ian Rush, from the club's youth set-up.

"It was a record sale of netsuke totaling just over $1.1 million."

More immediately, dealers had to cope yesterday with a record $18 billion sale of three-month and six-month Treasury bills at the weekly auction.

It remained Chester's record sale until they went bankrupt in March 2010.

It was the highest price ever paid at auction for a painting by the artist, in a record sale of American art at Sotheby's.