Comparable store sales, a key measure for the restaurant industry, were down 14% in its most recent quarter. Sales slumpStarbucks' comparable store sales in China have been incredibly volatile over the past five years. But in recent months, they've been hit by cautious consumer spending and increased competition, then-CEO Laxman Narasimhan told investors in July. Luckin Coffee, Starbucks' biggest rival in China, has nearly three times as many stores as Starbucks in the country after monumental unit growth. "We're not interested in entering the price war," Starbucks China CEO Belinda Wong told investors in January.

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Persons: —, Brian Niccol, they've, Laxman Narasimhan, Narasimhan, Sherri, Kearney, Luckin, McCafe, KFC's, Dave Xie, Oliver Wyman, Xie, latte, We're, Belinda Wong, Wong, it's, Brian Yarbrough, Edward Jones, Liu Ying Organizations: Service, Starbucks, Business, Bank of America, Bloomberg, Publishing, Getty, Reuters Locations: China, Beijing, Shanghai, Seattle, Luckin, Cotti, Xinhua