Replies to post #7904 on The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[wow_happens28]

Restaurants struggling in the US with the weak economy. But falling food commodity prices that will happen if ethanol standards are cut back, that will help restaurants and food processors like GIS, K, HSH and many others. I like them better that restaurants. I like the demographic thinking. The list below out to give me some research to do using the foreign angle. Restaurants in the US may be hurt by the unusual cold weather in January. Before Q2 results might be the them?

http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/342_cl_pub.htm


I owned the following foreign restaurant in 07, 08. Got stopped out with a negligent profit, boo. They got the World Cup this year and Olympics in 2016, could help, but maybe already factored in?

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=BOBS+Basic+Chart&t=my

[jbog]

I'd suggest that restaurants 'were' a intelligent way at one time. First of all American restaurants are not cheap overseas, I'd guess more than 25% higher than the states.

Secondly, because the American chains have to tweek their menu's for the local tastes, it doesn't take long until they are copied by local chains.

KLG in china right now has signage the looks exactly like KFC with the exception of the Colonel (they use a Happy Chicken instead) and their food is the equivalent at a lower cost.

US as a nation has about twice the advertising expenditures compared to China.

[wow_happens28]

"In December, industry-wide sales at restaurants open at least a year slid by 2%, even as the unemployment rate hit a five-year low and the stock market hit all-time highs"

http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/michael-santoli/casual-dining-chains-struggle-to-adapt-to-changing-consumer-tastes-203955971.html

I don't believe the media is telling us the whole story about the economy as the charts in the link below show. I repeat that restaurants will be weak as the economy weakens. So, international restaurant chains will have a head wind, but better off than chains based totally in the U.S. Unemployment can get better as more leave the workforce as unemployment runs out. Add to that, people going from 40 hours to 30 so the boss avoids Obama so called Care. And they are counted as full time in statistics.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-01-10/people-not-labor-force-soar-record-918-million-participation-rate-plunges-1978-level

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/ali-meyer/record-20-households-food-stamps-2013

[wow_happens28]

Restaurant Stock Outlook - Jan 2014 - Industry Outlook

http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&article=60828296