08/08/2025

BIZ & FINANCE FRIDAY | AUG 8, 2025

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McDonald’s second-quarter global sales top estimates

NEW McDonald’s second-quarter global comparable sales beat Wall Street estimates on Wednesday, as affordable meal bundles and promotions drew in budget-conscious diners looking to stretch their dollars amid economic uncertainty. Its shares rose 2.3% in early trading as strong demand in the US and international markets powered a 3.8% rise in global same-store sales, above expectations of a 2.4% rise, according to data compiled by LSEG. Fast-food chains have seen competition heat up as companies such as McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza and Taco Bell owner Yum Brands double down on value meals to counter a slowdown in demand, mainly among the lower-income households. To improve sales, McDonald’s launched a limited-time Happy Meal offer for kids and adults tied to the Minecraft movie promotion in April. YORK:

o Re-engaging low-income consumer is critical, CEO says In May, it introduced McCrispy Chicken Strips as a permanent menu item. These promotions are in addition to the US$5 meal deal and the buy-one, add-one for US$1

Mexican officials accuse Adidas of cultural appropriation MEXICO CITY: Officials in the southern Mexico state of Oaxaca accused sportswear giant Adidas of cultural appropriation after the fashion brand debuted sandals similar to a traditional design from the region. The Oaxaca Slip-On sandals were created by American fashion designer Willy Chavarria, who has Mexican heritage, but drew pushback from both state and local officials in Oaxaca, which has one of the highest indigenous populations in the country. Oaxaca Governor Salomon Jara first addressed the issue during a press conference on Tuesday, saying the sandals were a “reinterpreted huarache model”, particularly one that was uniquely found in the state. Isaias Carranza, a Oaxacan legislator of Indigenous Zapotec descent, wrote on his Facebook account: “The Adidas company, in conjunction with designer Willy Chavarria, appropriated a unique design of the traditional huaraches (sandals) from the people of the Hidalgo Yalalag village.” Jara also threatened to take legal action against Chavarria. “This huarache is from Yalalag ... we are also going to ask our Yalalag siblings to work with us so we can file a complaint” against the designer, he said at the press conference. For its part, the Ministry of Cultures and Arts of Oaxaca said in a statement that using cultural elements for commercial purposes without the consent of Indigenous peoples was “a violation of our collective rights”, demanding that Adidas stop selling the sandals, publicly acknowledge their origin and begin a process of “dialogue and redress of grievances” with the Yalalag community. The controversy is the latest instance of Mexican officials denouncing major brands or designers using unauthorised indigenous art or designs from the region, with previous complaints raised about Chinese fast fashion company Shein, Spanish mega-brand Zara and high fashion house Carolina Herrera. Adidas did not immediately respond to a request for comment. – AFP Adjusted net income of US$3.19 per share exceeded estimates of US$3.15. – Reuters Comparable sales in United States, McDonald’s biggest market, grew 2.5%, compared with a 0.7% decline a year ago. Sales in its business segment where restaurants are operated by local partners, jumped 5.6%, led by Japan, while it rose 4% in international markets, on demand recovery in the UK, Canada and France.

Yum Brands and Chipotle Mexican Grill. For the second quarter, customer visits to McDonald’s outperformed the wider quick-service restaurant category, data from foot traffic tracking firm Placer.ai showed. “While rivals like Yum Brands and Chipotle struggled with consumer pullback, McDonald’s played to its strengths by leaning into value, nostalgia and limited-time promotions,” eMarketer analyst Zak Stambor said.

offers launched last year. CEO Chris Kempczinski said re-engaging the low-income consumer is “critical”, as they typically visit its restaurants more frequently than middle- and high-income groups. “This bifurcated consumer base is why we remain cautious about the overall near-term health of the US consumer,” he said. Menu innovation and promotions had also helped Domino’s report upbeat US same-store sales, while weakening demand hurt sales at

Disney lifts forecast as it readies ESPN streaming launch NEW YORK: Disney on Wednesday lifted its full-year earnings forecast after reporting higher quarterly profits, as the company readies the launch of a new ESPN sports service. Profits for Disney’s fiscal third quarter were US$5.3 billion, about double the year-ago level as the entertainment giant added 1.8 million subscribers to its Disney+ streaming service. Revenues rose 2.1% to US$23.7 billion. designed to better monetise its sports entertainment offerings as revenue from conventional subscriptions declines. The entertainment giant has also announced ventures with the NFL American football league and the WWE wrestling network in recent days for the ESPN venture, which will be offered at US$29.99 per month. Disney’s “Experiences” division also contributed to its quarterly profit increase, with the company citing higher guest spending at theme parks and an uptick in revenues from cruises following a recent ship launch. Disney has “more expansions underway around the world in our parks and experiences than at any other time in our history”, said chief executive Bob Iger in a statement. The CEO also highlighted the ESPN venture and an upcoming integration of its separate Hulu streaming service into the Disney+ platform. “With ambitious plans ahead for all our businesses, we’re not done building, and we are excited for Disney’s future,” Iger said. On Tuesday night, Disney announced that ESPN had entered into an agreement to purchase the NFL Network and some other media assets in exchange for a 10% equity stake in ESPN, according to a Disney press release that said the NFL network would be “fully” integrated into the ESPN streaming service. The NFL deal with Disney “will add to consumer choice, provide viewers with even greater convenience and quality, and expand the breadth and value proposition of Disney’s streaming ecosystem”, Iger said in a press release. – AFP The company announced a launch date of Aug 21 for its long-discussed ESPN direct-to-consumer service,

Containers on a Maersk vessel as it sits at anchor in harbour in Copenhagen, Denmark. – REUTERSPIC

Maersk raises outlook on strong demand outside US COPENHAGEN: Danish shipping giant Maersk raised its 2025 earnings outlook yesterday, owing to robust demand outside the United States amid President Donald Trump’s tariff onslaught. “Even with market volatility and historical uncertainty in global trade, demand remained resilient, and we’ve continued to respond with speed and flexibility,” Maersk chief executive Vincent Clerc said in an earnings statement. evolving tariff landscape and high policy uncertainty in the United States”. “Unless new major shocks occur, global demand growth is expected to range between 2% and 4% for the full year,” Maersk said.

amortisation (EBITDA) rose to US$2.3 billion, up from US$2.1 billion a year earlier. Revenue rose by 3% to US$13.1 billion. “Our new East-West network is raising the bar on reliability and setting new industry standards. It has been a key driver of increased volumes and solid delivery of our Ocean business,” the chief executive said. – AFP

Maersk said it was now projecting a core profit of between US$8 billion (RM34 billion) and US$9.5 billion for the year, compared with the previously announced range of US$6 billion to US$9 billion.

Maersk reported a 26.5% drop in its second-quarter net profit to US$586 million. The company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and

At the same time, the shipping giant cautioned that “the outlook for global container demand over the remainder of the year remains uncertain, shaped by a rapidly