McDonald’s posts largest US sales jump since 1993

Fast-food giant McDonald’s on Thursday reported its largest annual increase in US sales since 1993. Sales at its American restaurants open for at least 13 months soared 13.8%.

The fourth quarter alone saw US sales jump 7.5%, partly due to price increases on some items on its menu.

In October last year, the company’s CEO, Chris Kempczinski, said menu prices were about 6% higher in 2021 compared to 2020, which didn’t turn off customers and “has been pretty well received” by them.

The fast-food chain was forced to raise prices to tackle wage inflation and cover the increased costs of food and paper, CFO Kevin Ozan said during an analyst call this week, as cited by CNN. He noted that costs may keep growing in 2022, as Covid-19-induced supply chain issues are expected to persist. McDonald’s also saw a significant boost in its digital sales and the growing popularity of certain menu items like the Crispy Chicken Sandwich and McRib.

Overall, the company said its 2021 sales “benefited from fewer restaurant closures and reduced Covid-related government restrictions compared with the prior year.”

The company reported a total of $6 billion in revenue for the past year. However, this fell short of analyst expectations, as did international sales. The chain’s shares shed some 2% following the sales report.

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