Ranchers can’t lower the price, that doesn’t make sense.
Left alone, it’s a certainty they will not. There is no incentive to do so.
They are price takers, not price makers. Order buyers are the price makers.
By the way, I am not about to do any herd replacement by the market. Cow calf pairs, if you can find them, are stupid money expensive. Last time I looked for any was a year ago and they had gone from $1500 a pair to $2200 to $2500 for some pretty shady looking mommas that did not have much time left. Left alone the market will correct. It will not go back to what it was but it will go down eventually.
As an example of how low numbers are, the local sale barn went out of business, just not enough stock passing the ring. They consolidated to the next county 30 miles away and the throughput there is pretty spare some Wednesdays.