This Week In Foodservice

The editorial team aggregates key industry information and provides brief analysis to help foodservice professionals navigate the data.

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Two Restaurant Chains Hit Bumps in the Road

Wendy’s disputes the Flynn Restaurant Groups’ move to buy NPC International. McDonald’s locks horns with some of its franchisees over the elimination of rebates and the cost of technology. These stories and a whole lot more This Week in Foodservice.

An analysis of COVID-19 virus outbreaks in the District of Columbia showed restaurants and bars were a major source of the illness but far from the worst and certainly not the only one. Of the 109 outbreaks of the virus in the District between August 1 and November 26, 15 or 13.8% were attributed to restaurants or bars. The leading source was colleges and universities (27.5%) followed by schools K-12 (17.4%) and childcare/daycare (13.8%).

Of course, there is no basis to assume the District’s data projects to the entire U.S. or any other section of the country. But it may help to put restaurants’ role in all of this into better perspective.

Economic News This Week

  • Initial unemployment claims surged by 137,000 to a level of 853,000 for the week ending Dec. 5. This came as a nasty shock with claims having totaled around 725,000 in recent weeks. Perhaps the one positive development that will come from this report is it may get the folks in Washington, D.C. moving on the next stimulus package.
  • Consumer borrowing increased by 2.1% in October at an adjusted annual rate. Revolving credit, mostly credit card debt, fell by 6.7.%. Non-revolving credit (car loans, student loans, etc.) rose 4.8%.
  • The Producer Price Index for Final Demand rose 0.1% in November. This follows a 0.3% increase in October and a 0.4% increase in September. November’s increase was primarily driven by a 0.4% rise in final demand goods. Final demand services was unchanged from October. Excluding food and energy prices, the price index for final demand goods rose 0.2%. The change for final demand in the last 12 months is up 0.8%. The price for final demand food rose 0.5% in November.
  • The Consumer Price Index increased 0.2% in November after being unchanged in October. For the 12 month period ending in November the index is up 1.2%. Excluding food and energy, the CPI was up 0.2% in November and up 1.2% in the last 12 months. November food prices declined 0.1%, with food-at-home prices down 0.3% and food-away-from-home prices up 0.1%. In the 12-months ending in November food prices rose 3.7% with food-at-home prices up 3.6% and food-away-from-home prices up 3.8%.
  • Non-farm business sector productivity increased 4.6% in the third quarter, reports the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Unit labor costs in the non-farm business sector fell 6.6% in the third quarter.
  • The University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment posted “a surprising increase,” per a university spokesperson. The preliminary December Index rose to 81.4 from 76.9 in November. The Current Economic Conditions Index reading was 91.8, up from 87.0. The Index of Consumer Expectations increased from 70. 5 in November to 74.7.

Foodservice News This Week

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