McDonald’s January Store Sales Rise 6.7%

McDonald’s Corp. said Wednesday that a key revenue figure climbed 6.7 per-cent in January as Uืnited States customers spent more on breakfast items, beverages and its new Chicken McBites.

Analysts projected a gain of 5.8 per-cent, the average of 6 estimates compiled by Bloomberg News. Sales in the United States advanced 7.8 per-cent, the Oak Brook, Illinois-based company said today in a statement. Analysts estimated a gain of 7.1 per-cent.

Chief Executive Officer Jim Skinner has boosted sales in the US by keeping restaurants open longer; about 40 per-cent of stores now operate 24 hours a day. The chain has recently promoted classic items such as the Big Mac and Chicken McNuggets as well as a McRib sandwich and Chicken McBites at its US locations, which generate about one-third of company revenue.

“They’re probably taking share from some of their peers, including Burger King,” Peter Saleh, a New York-based analyst at Telsey Advisory Group, said in an interview. They may also be taking business from Sonic Corp. and Wendy’s Co. because McDonald’s stores are “newer and more up-to-date,” he said.

McDonald’s will spend about $1.45 billion to remodel and modernize more than 2,400 restaurants this year globally, Skinner said during a conference call in January. In 2011, the company remodeled 2,500 stores.

Sales rose 4 per-cent in Europe and 7.3 per-cent in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Analysts estimated growth of 4 percent at McDonald’s stores in Europe and 6 percent in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

McDonald’s rose 0.2 per-cent to $101.13 at 9:36 a.m. in New York. The shares climbed 31 per-cent last year.