Strong gains by Rational Americas, Manitowoc Foodservice and Middleby Corp. pushed blended sales of the public equipment and supplies companies into positive territory in the second quarter, with combined revenues up 0.7%. It was the first time the companies managed growth since the third quarter 2008. The gain follows a revised 4.3% decline in the…

Technomic Inc. predicts foodservice real operator sales will fall 0.3% next year, an unprecedented fourth consecutive year of real sales declines. The Chicago-based research group unveiled the numbers Sept. 23 during the annual Forecast & Outlook Conference sponsored annually by the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association. Nominal sales are forecast to rise 1.7% in 2011. Technomic…

The slightest possible gain in the National Restaurant Association’s Performance Index couldn’t mask the fact that the restaurant industry continues to struggle. The index rose only 0.1 point to 99.5. It’s the fourth consecutive month the index remained under the 100 level that signals the difference between contraction and expansion. Both capital expenditure measures were…

Restaurant traffic fell 1% in the second quarter versus the same quarter last year, according to NPD Group’s CREST research. It is the eighth consecutive quarter of traffic declines according to the Port Washington, N.Y., research group. Noncommercial traffic fell 6% during the period. But in yet another sign that the foodservice market is gradually…

The slowdown in the growth of consumer spending over the summer has led economists to cut their forecasts of most key economic measures. Forecast growth of U.S. real gross domestic product for 2010 dropped 0.2 point to 2.7% in the early September survey of more than 50 economists by Blue Chip Economic Indicators newsletter. Predicted…

While the Blue Chip Economic Indicators’ economists cut the U.S. forecasts, the economic outlooks for many countries in Europe and Asia improved, especially in Europe. A much stronger than anticipated rise in real gross domestic product in the second quarter in several Eurozone countries pushed the forecast for overall Eurozone GDP growth this year to…

According to Technomic Inc., the wealthiest 25% of households in the U.S. account for nearly 50% of all foodservice spending. Their cutbacks during The Great Recession have severely stressed many foodservice concepts, particularly those at the higher end. In this light, the preliminary reading on consumer sentiment from the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of…

Wholesale food prices for so-called “finished” foods fell 0.3 in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index data, released Sept. 16. It was the fourth month in five for declines in wholesale food prices after eight months of increases. The Finished Goods Index as a whole rose 0.4% for the month,…

Foodservice Equipment Reports’ E&S Market Forecast package is available for purchase for $449. Purchasers will receive the entire seven-section forecast, including detailed data and analysis of economic and operator trends, exclusive commodity price forecasts from Tom Stundza of IHS Global Insight; E&S manufacturer list-price data from AutoQuotes Inc.; a ranking and analysis of the Top…

The two capital expenditure measures that are part of the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index rose in July, even while the overall index fell slightly. The worrisome issue is the continuing decline in operators’ expectations about business over the next six months. The overall RPI fell 0.1 point to 99.4, the fourth-consecutive monthly decline,…