Restaurant Performance Index tops 100 for 7th straight month
The outlook for the restaurant industry remained positive for the months ahead, as the National Restaurant Association's Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) remained above 100 in May. The RPI - a monthly composite index that tracks the health of and outlook for the U.S. restaurant industry - stood at 101.4 in May, down 0.2 percent from April's level of 101.6. Despite the decline, May represented the seventh consecutive month that the RPI stood above 100, which signifies expansion in the index of key industry indicators.
"Despite a soft patch in the overall economy, restaurant operators reported positive same-store sales for the 12th consecutive month," said Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the Research and Knowledge Group for the Association. "Looking forward, restaurant operators remain generally optimistic about sales growth in the months ahead, though they are somewhat less bullish about the direction of the economy."