An exceptional year has ended, full of trouble, for McDonald’s, which lost sales in many markets due to the war in Gaza.
Global store sales, or sales at restaurants open at least a year, rose 3.4 percent from October to December, much lower than the 4.7 percent increase Wall Street expected, according to analysts polled by FactSet Research Systems.
Customers in the Middle East were angry after McDonald’s Israel, which is run by a local company, announced in October that it would provide free meals to Israeli soldiers, according to what the Associated Press reported.
In response, some locally run businesses, such as McDonald’s Amman, announced donations to relief efforts in Gaza.
Last month, McDonald’s President and CEO Chris Kempczinski warned that “misinformation” in the Middle East and elsewhere was hurting sales.
In addition to boycotting customers, McDonald’s was forced to temporarily limit store hours or close some locations due to the protests.
Kempczinski said in a post on the LinkedIn platform, “We hate violence of any kind, stand firmly against hate speech, and will always proudly open our doors to anyone.”
It is noteworthy that this was an unexpected end to a strong year for the burger giant, which said that global store sales rose by 9 percent in 2023.
Widespread marketing successes, such as last spring’s Grimm’s Shake and improved menu items, helped full-year revenue increase 10 percent to nearly $25 billion.
McDonald’s was not the only American company to witness an angry reaction to the war in recent months.
Starbucks said last week that it faces a boycott in the Middle East and elsewhere over its apparent support for Israel.
McDonald’s revenue rose 8 percent to $6.4 billion in the fourth quarter, in line with analysts’ expectations. Net income increased by 7 percent to $2 billion.
2024-02-05 15:49:02
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