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Show The Livestock Situation LOS ANGELES, Calif., October 12, 1937 Drastic declines in cattle prices on middle western and eastern livestock markets, occasioned partly by the so-called '"strike" of orthodox ortho-dox Jewish butchers in New York, has had but little effect on values here on the Pacific Coast. The reason rea-son for this is that the Pacific Coast cattle price structure, while not on the extremely high levels reached in the middle west, appears to be on a more stable basis. As a matter of fact, there can be no reason for consumer resistance to the meat price structure in this area. Yet it must be admitted that widespread wide-spread publicity accorded the extremely ex-tremely high prices in Chicago has had some bearish effect on our western markets. Some producers charge that retail dealers have taken advantage of daily newspaper publicity pub-licity on the relative high Chicago market prices to boost meat prices on the Pacific Coast, despite a steady market for livestock. Then it must be granted that in many instances, there is a greater spread between prices on the hoof and prices over the retail counter because of higher costs of processing and distribution. Higher labor costs, higher taxes and increased overhead costs are bound to widen the difference between what the producer gets and what the consumer con-sumer pays. On the whole, the livestock price structure appears to be on a stable basis in the far west. It is possible that the decline in cattle prices in the middle west may cause some weakening in stacker and feeder cattle prices. California cattlemen have been slow to make commitments commit-ments on replacement cattle as they viewed the market as being top-heavy. top-heavy. A very slight decline in feeder feed-er cattle prices would greatly stimulate stimu-late the movement of stocker and feeder cattle into this state. California Cali-fornia ordinarily imports about a half million stocker and feeder cattle cat-tle annually, taking about 90 of the Arizona production. The balance of California's replacements come from other states in the Southwest, and the Intermountain country. More than ever before, cattlemen are making use of the Los Angeles Union Stock Yards as a stocker and feeder cattle market. About 25, of last week's cattle receipts at the Los Angeles market went back to the country to go into feedlots or on the range. As the season advances, it is expected that as high as 50 to 75 of the cattle arriving on the Los Angeles market will be purchased pur-chased as replacements for feedlot and range. On that basis, the Los Angeles market could easily handle receipts far in excess of 10,000 cattle weekly. |