Declines in six of the eight components of the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index pushed the overall index down for the second consecutive month in July. The RPI fell 0.6 point to 100.7. But the index remained above the 100 level, indicating the industry continued to expand for the fifth month in a row.…

After a slow period in the first half of 2013, Foodservice Equipment Reports predicts growth of the foodservice equipment and supplies market will accelerate in the second half of this year and into 2014. The magazine unveiled its forecast during FER’s annual President’s Preview E&S Market Forecast meeting, held Aug. 7 at the Westin O’Hare…

List price increases for foodservice equipment, supplies and related products continue to moderate, according to data compiled by AutoQuotes Inc. for Foodservice Equipment Reports annual President’s Preview E&S Market Forecast. “There just hasn’t been much price inflation,” says AutoQuotes CEO Kent Motes. For the 12 months ended June 30, 2013, average list prices for 453,081…

The 100 largest manufacturers of foodservice equipment, supplies, furnishings and  related products grew combined sales 5.7%, according to data released during Foodservice Equipment Reports annual President’s Preview E&S Market Forecast meeting Aug. 7 in Rosemont, Ill. The growth rate beat that of the broad market by nearly two full points. FER estimates that E&S market…

Wholesale food prices fell in July, the first decline in three months, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index. The National Restaurant Association’s composite wholesale food index, based on the PPI, fell 0.2% from June, following increases of 1% in May and 0.4% in June, versus the prior months. For…

Today is the day we present our annual forecast overview of the foodservice equipment and supplies market, the Foodservice Equipment Reports’ 2014 President’s Preview E&S Market Forecast. We’re at the Westin O’Hare Hotel in Rosemont, Ill., with an audience of manufacturers, dealers, reps and others in the industry. Because we’re unveiling the forecast today, we…

The National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index remained quite positive in the June survey, details of which were released July 31. The overall index fell half a point to 101.3, mostly on declines in current same-store sales and customer traffic. But the index remains well above the 100 level that signals the difference between industry…

The total number of restaurants in the U.S. market grew moderately the past year, according to spring data from The NPD’s Group twice-a-year restaurant census, ReCount. The number of total net units grew 0.5%, or an addition of 3,045, to 617,505. The new totals are a revision of previous ReCount totals based on new information.…

The percentage of Canadian restaurant operators reporting higher same-store sales in the second quarter of this year, compared with the same quarter in 2012, rose slightly, while those reporting lower sales dropped somewhat, according to the latest survey from the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association’s quarterly Restaurant Outlook Survey. Of those surveyed, 34% report higher…

The monthly jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the U.S. economy created 162,000 net new jobs in July, lower than the past few months and 20,000 to 25,000 lower than most economists expected. In the perverse environment of the financial markets, this was seen as positive, because they believe it will slow…