McDonald's sales rise after US launch of all-day breakfast

McDonald's sales were better than expected in the fourth quarter, helped by the launch of all-day breakfasts in the US.

Global same-restaurant sales at the fast food giant grew 5%.

McDonald's extended US breakfasts beyond 10:30am in October, saying it was customers' number one request.

The company, working to turnaround its business under chief executive Steve Easterbrook, said the breakfast change helped US sales grow 5.7%.

Fourth-quarter revenue fell 4% to $6.4bn (£4.5bn) due to the strong dollar, but profits rose 10% to $1.2bn, McDonald's said.

'Urgent action'

Mr Easterbrook, who was appointed a year ago, said: "We took bold, urgent action in 2015 to reset the business and position McDonald's to deliver sustained profitable growth."

The company said sales in its "high growth" markets, which include Russia and China, rose 3%.

In the UK, which does not have an all-day breakfast, sales rose as the company served 3.7 million customers a day.

McDonald's said it would continue to introduce table service in its UK stores, including in refurbished restaurants from next month.