Only two of the 10 major foodservice markets tracked by The NPD Group saw traffic increases in the fourth quarter of 2012, though check average increases helped six of the 10 post sales gains. Even in China, traffic growth slowed to below 10% for the first quarter in years. Australia, with a one-point gain, was…

After a sharp drop in December, overall wholesale food prices crept up only 0.1% in January, according to calculations on the three stages of wholesale food prices reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Declines in prices for meats and poultry, dairy products, eggs and fresh fruits overcame strong gains for fresh vegetables and fish.…

The number of Canadian restaurant operators reporting increased same-store sales in fourth quarter 2012 fell to 33% from a robust 44% in the third quarter, according to data from the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association’s quarterly Restaurant Outlook Survey. The changes are against the same quarter the prior year. A slowing economy, bad weather, concern…

The mid-month reading on consumer sentiment from Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers surprised some observers by popping up to 76.3 from the final January reading of 73.8. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the index to rise only slightly. The current conditions and expectations measures also rose. Surprisingly, households with incomes below $75,000…

This is getting to be like a broken record. Once again average gasoline prices are increasing earlier than is typical, with the national average for a gallon up nearly 40 cents in the past month alone. Foodservice operators are worrying that the spike, on top of the increase in the payroll tax Jan. 1, will…

Overall state tax revenues grew 2.7% in third quarter 2012 vs. the third quarter the year before, the 11th consecutive quarter of increases since the depths of the Great Recession, according to data from the Rockefeller Institute of Government, Albany, N.Y. Still, the rate of increase has declined for five consecutive quarters since peaking in…

Steep declines in the indicators for current same-store sales and traffic pushed the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index lower in December. But the two markers that track operator capital spending posted strong gains and all the other indicators rose or were flat. Still, the overall index stood at 99.7, the third month the index…

The net numbers of both chain and independent restaurant units in the U.S. were up 0.7%, an increase of 4.442 restaurants, in the year ended September 2012, according to the latest data from NPD Group’s twice-a-year ReCount Census. The Port Washington, N.Y.-based research firm also reported that overall restaurant traffic for the year ended November…

It really just comes down to money. A new report from The NPD Group details how older Americans, those 55 and older, have increased their visits to restaurants of all kinds since 2008, while younger Americans have rather dramatically cut back. What NPD calls “older boomers,” those 55 to 64, now have the highest per…

Only China and Canada recorded significant increases in restaurant visits in the third quarter of last year, according to data from the NPD Group. Six of the 10 markets in which NPD charts foodservice activity—Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Spain—recorded declines. Traffic was flat in the United Kingdom and U.S. Continuing economic struggles and…