McDonald's to Close 175 Restaurants

Oak Brook, Illinois--Fast-food giant McDonald's Corp.said it would shutter about 175 restaurants--its second major roundof closings in two years--and slash up to 600 worldwide corporatepositions, as it struggles to turn around its U.S. performance andtrim worldwide costs. The restructuring also includes a plannedexit from three undisclosed countries where McDonald's alreadyhas operations.

With a history of driving growth through rapid expansion,McDonald's, which operates nearly 30,000 restaurants worldwide,has been retrenching on store openings. In 2003, the company plansto open about 600 hamburger outlets worldwide, down from a high of2,000 in 1996 and a planned 1,300 this year. Last year, it closed163 underperforming stores. -Reuters