NRA’S PERFORMANCE INDEX DROPPED BACK IN JULY

The graph is starting to look a little scary. The National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index fell back sharply in July, dipping to 99.7. This puts the index below the 100 point that signals expansion vs. contraction. The expectations and capital goods indicators took especially hard hits.

The overall index fell 0.9 point. All eight components of the index were negative. The Current Situations Index was down 0.7 point to 99.8, and the Expectations Index fell 1.1 points to 99.6. It was the first time the Expectations Index dropped below 100 since November 2009.

While current same-store sales and traffic were down 0.6 point and 0.8 point respectively, the marker for those making a capital buy during the past three months fell a full point to end at 98.5. The percentage of operators making a capital expenditure fell to 43%, the lowest percentage in five months.

The six-month outlook for business conditions fell a whopping 2 points, while the indicator for operators planning a capital expenditure during the next six month fell 1.6 points, to 98.4. Only 42% of operators expect to make such a buy, down sharply from the 50% who had such plans in the June survey.