The Federal Reserve’s latest Beige Book takes a bleak look at the region’s economy, including Colorado’s. Consumer spending was down in December, leading to heavy discounts at stores. Manufacturing weakened. Home sales decreased. Bankers reported a decline in loan demand.

That’s a big-picture view, covering the Federal Reserve’s 10th District, which also includes Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming, and parts of Missouri and New Mexico, according to the Denver Business Journal.

The bad economy, along with other factors, such as “new values,” seems to be impacting even America’s willingness to splurge on a steak dinner, says a researcher with the so-called International Livestock Congress, which is in Denver for the Stock Show (via MSNBC).