China Starts to Lose Its Taste for McDonald’s and KFC
A bacon, mushroom and chicken rice dish is served to a customer at a KFC restaurant in Beijing.
Photographer: Nelson Ching/BloombergWhen it comes to China’s multi-billion dollar fast food industry, Yum! Brands Inc. and McDonald’s Corp. are living large, enjoying a combined 38 percent share of the market in 2015. Yum’s KFC restaurant chain and the Golden Arches have long enjoyed a run of super-sized growth as consumers craved a taste of Americana.
Now, as both these giants eye spinoffs of their mainland operations, analysts are wondering whether the glory days might be over. There are signs that both companies’ absolute dominance of a fast food industry they helped create is starting to slip away as consumers shift to healthier options and Chinese-style food chains—from huoguo (hot pot) to tangbao (steamed dumplings)—proliferate.