During the first half of its fiscal year, which ended Dec. 31, Burger King opened a total of 55 new domestic restaurants. Meanwhile, the company opened 85 units in Europe, Asia and the Middle East and entered two new markets, Indonesia and Japan. Also in the last year, Burger King has opened 90 restaurants in Latin America. Overall, Burger King has about 11,000 units in 65 countries.
Same-stores sales worldwide rose 3.7% year over year in the second quarter. In North America there was a 4.4% rise, while US comparable sales on their own were up 4.5%.
Total revenues for the quarter increased 9%, to $559 million, while net income skyrocketed 41% to $38 million. Executives attributed the rise to success with the chain's value meals and the sales of Xbox video games.
The company also invested $12 million in improving its UK business, and sales there have risen in the past three months, executives say. "It's a tough real estate environment because of the way leases are structured in the UK," said John Chidsey, the company's chief executive officer, during a conference call.
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