Asian Markets Slip as AI Spending Fears Shake Tech, Wall Street Futures Rebound 
Australian Scandium Project Backed by Richard Friedland Poised to Support U.S. Critical Minerals Stockpile 
Dow Hits 50,000 as U.S. Stocks Stage Strong Rebound Amid AI Volatility 
Nintendo Shares Slide After Earnings Miss Raises Switch 2 Margin Concerns 
Global Markets Slide as AI, Crypto, and Precious Metals Face Heightened Volatility 
Alphabet’s Massive AI Spending Surge Signals Confidence in Google’s Growth Engine 
AMD Shares Slide Despite Earnings Beat as Cautious Revenue Outlook Weighs on Stock 
Uber Ordered to Pay $8.5 Million in Bellwether Sexual Assault Lawsuit 
Gold and Silver Prices Rebound After Volatile Week Triggered by Fed Nomination 
Anthropic Eyes $350 Billion Valuation as AI Funding and Share Sale Accelerate 
Japan Economy Poised for Q4 2025 Growth as Investment and Consumption Hold Firm 
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record 
Global PC Makers Eye Chinese Memory Chip Suppliers Amid Ongoing Supply Crunch 
Oil Prices Slip as U.S.–Iran Talks Ease Supply Disruption Fears 
CK Hutchison Launches Arbitration After Panama Court Revokes Canal Port Licences 
Dollar Steadies Ahead of ECB and BoE Decisions as Markets Turn Risk-Off 
U.S.-India Trade Framework Signals Major Shift in Tariffs, Energy, and Supply Chains 
McDonald’s is expanding further this year and revealed its plans to open 1,900 branches. The growth that the brand has displayed recently was said to have encouraged the fast-food chain to build more stores in 2023.
The company’s targeted number of McDonald's stores made it its largest growth move since 2014. More than 400 of the new outlets are to be built in the United States or its other global markets such as Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and France.
The rest, which is 1,500 stores, are set to be opened by licensees and affiliate markets that include 900 in China. According to Yahoo Finance, McDonald’s is planning to invest $2.2 billion to $2.4 billion in capital expenditures.
The chain’s chief financial officer and executive vice president, Ian Borden, said that half of the total investment “will be dedicated to new net openings." He mentioned this plan during the call with investors after the release of McDonald’s fourth-quarter earnings results.
"Overall, we anticipate over 4% unit growth from about 1,500 net restaurant additions in 2023. We expect this will contribute, along with restaurants opened in 2022, nearly 1.5% to systemwide sales growth," Borden said. "The growth in the U.S. is still going to be rather nominal. At best, I think they are going to open about 100 stores, then, those that are closed, maybe another 80 get to about a net number of about 20."
It was noted that this growth strategy of McDonald’s marks the first time it has made a big push in increasing its locations since 2014. In any case, Restaurant Business previously reported that McDonald’s also added new locations in its biggest markets last year and that was the first time it happened.
Based on the report, the fast-food brand ended 2022 with 13,444 stores in the U.S. which is more that the number it added in 2021. This year, the plan is to expand further with the establishment of more restaurants.
“Our strong comp and brand performance has given us the right to build new units at a faster rate than we have historically,” McDonald’s chief executive officer, Chris Kempczinski, previously told investors.
Photo by: Visual Karsa/Unsplash
