According to The NPD Group, only four of 11 global markets (Australia, Great Britain, Russia and China) that were surveyed experienced an increase in traffic during the second quarter. While average checks increased worldwide, traffic declined in some markets causing some concern for the industry’s ability to attract repeat customers. The seven markets that did not show a traffic increase showed only modest declines or flat traffic. In the U.S., operators experienced an average check increase of 2.4 percent, however traffic remained stagnant compared with the same quarter in the year prior. Domestic and international traffic numbers seem to be fairly similar despite the different reasons for the decline.

Global SVP for NPD Foodservice, Bob O’Brien,  expressed in a statement that if there aren’t better results from quick service the entire industry will struggle: “Globally … the industry will continue to eddy about, growing here and declining there, with no clear direction.” According to an NPD report released in the past month, QSR visits fell 1 percent for the 12-month period ending in June, while visits to fine-dining restaurants rose 3 percent.

Some researchers have suggested that the traffic decline is caused by the confidence levels of low-income American consumers; “Those consumers — core customers for quick-service restaurants — are not increasing discretionary income for restaurant purchases in the wake of the Great Recession.” To read more about the trends in global restaurant traffic and possible explanations, click here