USA: October hog futures settle up

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) live and feeder cattle futures slipped on Monday as boxed beef prices retreated and consumer demand fell, Reuters reported, citing traders. Wholesale boxed beef prices have slid as industry players closely monitor consumer spending habits amid evidence that inflation-hit Americans are reducing their spending on pricier cuts of beef such as steak, which could be weighing on cattle futures. Choice boxed beef prices slid by 35 cents to $304.57 per hundredweight and select cuts of beef fell by $2.03 to $292.14 per hundredweight, according to US Department of Agriculture (USDA) data published on Monday afternoon. CME October live cattle futures ended down 0.425 cent at 177.225 cents per pound. October feeder cattle ended down 0.125 cent at 239 cents per pound. "My theory is that the US consumer has been so beat up by inflation, especially the middle to lower income consumer, that they're actively trading down, and that's a major problem for the cattle ...