McDonald's to close stores, eliminate jobs; pulling entirely out of three countries

<br>CHICAGO (AP) _ McDonald's Corp. announced a series of cuts Friday, saying it will trim up to 600 jobs and pull out of three foreign countries altogether. <br><br>The fast-food giant said it is

Friday, November 8th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

CHICAGO (AP) _ McDonald's Corp. announced a series of cuts Friday, saying it will trim up to 600 jobs and pull out of three foreign countries altogether.

The fast-food giant said it is closing approximately 175 underperforming restaurants in about 10 countries, and will restructure operations in four foreign countries in addition to the three where it is leaving. It did not immediately identify the countries.

The company, based in suburban Oak Brook, is struggling with a crowded restaurant market, complaints about service and a depressed stock price. McDonald's says it expects the moves to reduce its fourth quarter pretax income.

``We remain focused on growing our existing restaurants' sales and we're committed to making the changes necessary to succeed in the challenging worldwide economic and competitive environments in which we operate,'' chairman and CEO Jack Greenberg said.

McDonald's says of the jobs it will eliminate, 200 to 250 are based in the United States. These reductions will be achieved in part through attrition and the elimination of open positions, the company said.

McDonald's has more than 13,300 stores in the United States alone, and operates more than 30,000 restaurants worldwide.

Systemwide sales totaled $34.5 billion for the first 10 months of 2002, a 2 percent increase from the same period last year, according to the company.