Driven by a more optimistic outlook among restaurant operators in the United States for future business conditions, the Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) registered a moderate gain in September. It stood at 100.7, up 0.5% from a level of 100.2 in August of 2017.
The Current Situation Index stood at 99.9 in September – down slightly from a level of 100.0 in August, according to the Washington, DC-based National Restaurant Association. September represented the third consecutive monthly decline in the current situation component, and marked the first time since April that it dropped into contraction territory.
The Expectations Index stood at 101.6 in September – up 1.1% from August and the first increase in four months. Each of the four expectations indicators improved in September, the first such occurrence in seven months.
