Restaurant Owners More Upbeat

 

Oct. 31, 2006 -- The restaurant industry saw an upturn in business last month as lower gas prices had more people eating out, the National Association of Restaurants reported today.

The Washington-based trade group's monthly performance index, which tracks the current strengths and future outlook for the industry across the country, rose 0.8 percent from August to 101.5 in September, the sharpest gain in 11 months, the group said.

Over half of the restaurant owners polled expect sales to increase in the months ahead, the group said.

The index measures trends in sales, traffic, labor, and capital expenditures at restaurant and food outlets across the country.

The National Association of Restaurants currently has 925,000 members, representing a work force of more than 12 million restaurant employees.

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