FORTUNE: July wasn’t exactly magical for McDonald’s, as the fast-food chain saw global sales plunge, pulled down by weakness in the U.S. and the effects of a food safety scandal in China.
The world’s biggest hamburger chain said global comparable sales, a key measure, decreased 2.5% in July. This is more than double the 1.1% analysts expected sales to drop. Other markets saw sharp declines: McDonald’s reported a 3.2% sales drop in the U.S. and a 7.3% slump in Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
The largest driver of the drop was the recent scandal involving McDonald’s MCD 0.26% meat supplier in Asia, who was accused of repackaging expired meat and picking meat up off the floor and putting it into circulation… (more)
