McDonald's Corp. showed its first sign of vulnerability to the U.S. economic slowdown Monday and uneasy investors responded by selling off the fast-food chain's stock despite its booming international sales and healthy $1.27 billion profit.
Chief Executive Jim Skinner said customers showed more of a preference last month for items on its dollar menu. He said the weakened economy is likely to knock 1 to 2 percentage points off its U.S. comparable sales in the near term, with January U.S. sales roughly 1.5 percent above a year ago.
"We're recession-resistant, not recession-proof,"Skinner said on a conference call.
