Strong UK performance boosts Burger King revenues

A strong performance in the UK has helped to push revenues up sharply at fast-food giant Burger King in the past three months.

Little more than a week after McDonald's reported that the UK had played a vital part in a 22% hike in its first-quarter profits, Burger King also said that the UK had been instrumental in a 5.3% increase in sales across Europe in the three months to the end of March.

"Robust UK comparative sales drove this increase, the result of last quarter's strategic investments including the introduction of the premium Aberdeen Angus burger supported by marketing efforts targeted at our core consumer and ongoing operational improvements," said Burger King chief executive John Chidsey.

The past year had seen Burger King buy 37 of its UK franchised restaurants, which had also contributed to an increase in revenue, he added.

Growth in the UK region for the nine months to the end of March had been 2.6%. Revenues for the chain as a whole for the third quarter were up 9% against the same period last year, to $539m (£269m) from $495m (£247m).

Revenues for the chain as a whole were up by a similar percentage for the nine months, rising to $1.64b (£819m), from $1.52b (£759m).

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By Nic Paton

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