Cattle futures edged lower Wednesday, with technical pressure and the week’s higher grain futures prices.
Live Cattle futures closed an average of 38¢ lower.
Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of 51¢ lower, except for unchanged to an average of 45¢ higher up front.
Negotiated cash fed cattle trade ranged from mostly inactive on light demand to slow on moderate demand with too few transactions to trend in any region, according to the Agricultural Marketing Service. There were a few live sales in Nebraska at $145/cwt. and a few in the western Corn Belt at $147. There were also some early dressed trades in Nebraska at $232-$233.
On Tuesday, live sales in the Southern Plains were steady to $1 higher at $142.
Last week, live prices were $146.00-$148.50 in Nebraska and $148-$150 in the western Corn Belt. Dressed prices were $234.
Choice Boxed beef cutout value was 3¢ higher Wednesday afternoon at $262.83/cwt. Select was $1.18 lower at $237.62/cwt.
Grain futures softened Wednesday with likely profit taking from the recent price surge.
Corn futures closed mostly 1¢ to 2¢ lower.
Soybean futures closed mostly 7¢ to 11¢ lower.
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Major U.S. financial indices shifted gears and closed a touch higher Wednesday with support including higher energy prices.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 59 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 12 points higher. The NASDAQ was up 50 points.
West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil futures on the CME closed 80¢ to $1.528 higher through the front six contracts.
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While inflation is more moderate for food away-from-home (7.6% versus a year ago) compared to food-at-home (13.1% versus a year ago), the typical away-from-home eating occasion still costs 3.4 times more than in-home food sourced from retail, according to analysts with the NPD Group (NPD) and Information Resources, Inc. To offset rising food costs, they say consumers are bargain hunting when grocery shopping, eating more meals at home and cutting back on restaurant visits.
“With inflation hitting 8.5% in July, it’s no surprise that consumers are trading down to lower-priced options and opting for more value, especially when dining out,” says Krishnakumar (KK) Davey, president of CPG and Retail Thought Leadership for IRI and NPD. “While the pandemic and recent inflationary pressures shifted demand, restaurants and foodservice outlets offering value, convenience and at-home indulgence are top of mind for consumers and will continue to grow.”
“Even with the impact of elevated grocery prices, dining out is still much more expensive than eating at home,” explains David Portalatin, senior vice president and industry advisor for Food and Foodservice for The NPD Group. “As we head into 2023, restaurant recovery will be slow and steady, as traffic begins to return to pre-pandemic levels. Current demand suggests that culinary trends are shifting to incorporate more bold flavors inspired by global and regional influences.”
The nearly $1.5 trillion at-home and away-from-home food market is forecast to grow around 8% in 2022, with at-home food (8.7% sales growth versus a year ago) outpacing away-from-home (6% versus a year ago), according to inaugural IRI and NPD inaugural joint research. It offers the first-ever comprehensive view of the Complete Food™ market, examining how consumers buy and consume food at home, use restaurants and foodservice outlets and uncovers new insights about consumers’ trade-offs to save money and splurge in the current inflationary environment. The research forecasts the Complete Food market to grow by 3-5% in 2023.