[1/5] A woman sits on a swing attached to a giant sign of McDonald's, outside its themed exhibition in Beijing, China December 4, 2023.
One advantage for McDonald’s: its majority partner in the China business, CITIC, provides top-level political cover, said Jason Yu, greater China managing director of market research firm Kantar Worldpanel.
McDonald's China, Carlyle Group and CITIC declined to comment.
Other consumer-facing U.S. firms, including Starbucks (SBUX.O), Apple (AAPL.O), Coach owner Tapestry (TPR.N) and sportswear giant Nike (NKE.N), have remained similarly dedicated to the China market.
Although the McDonald's China menu would be familiar to U.S. consumers, there are nods to local tastes, including taro pie, rather than apple.
Persons:
Tingshu Wang, McDonald's, Jason Yu, Kantar, Yu, Carlyle, Wallace, Greg, Euromonitor, Ben Cavender, Casey, Kane Wu, Deborah Sophia, Gerry Doyle
Organizations:
REUTERS, Rights, Group, Carlyle Group, Starbucks, Apple, Nike, Research, Investment, China Market Research, Casey Hall, Thomson
Locations:
Beijing, China, U.S, Hong Kong, Macau, Yum China, Russia, Shanghai, Bengaluru