McDonald’s sales rise as US menu prices climb

AP
AP

Summary

  • Burger giant’s same-store sales surpass pre-pandemic levels as Covid-19 restrictions loosen in major markets

McDonald’s Corp. said higher menu prices helped lift its U.S. sales, while loosening Covid-19 restrictions overseas helped to boost its international business.

The burger giant said Wednesday that global same-store sales in the quarter ended Sept. 30 increased 10.2% compared with the same period before the pandemic. U.S. same-store sales were up 14.6% compared with the equivalent 2019 period.

McDonald’s said that bigger order sizes and higher prices increased its revenue in the U.S., as did its new crispy chicken sandwich and celebrity-endorsed meals.

The Chicago-based burger giant reported quarterly net income climbed 22% from the same quarter a year earlier, rising to $2.15 billion. Sales totaling $6.2 billion increased 14% from the previous year’s period. Adjusting for one-time items, McDonald’s said it earned $2.76 a share.

The company’s sales and earnings topped analysts’ expectations.

Companies across the globe are raising consumer prices in response to growing costs spanning distribution and freight to fuel and food. U.S. inflation in September remained at its highest rate in more than a decade, Labor Department data showed.

Many restaurants are raising menu prices to offset higher wages for cooks and servers, and rising costs for meat, packaging, vegetable oil and other commodities. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., Del Taco Restaurants Inc. and Chili’s owner Brinker International Inc. are among the chains that told investors in recent weeks that they have increased prices to help cover costs.

McDonald’s said over the summer that its menu prices had increased roughly 6% in the past year.

On Wednesday, the world’s biggest burger chain said that it had fewer Covid-19-related restaurant closures in major markets such as Canada, France and Germany, helping McDonald’s sales in those countries during the quarter.

 

 

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text

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