McDonald’s sees its biggest sales drop since the pandemic as customers fearful of economy pull back on spending

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McDonald’s has reported its biggest sales drop since the pandemic as customers in the U.S. are concerned about the economy and are pulling back on spending.

The fast food chain’s U.S. sales shrank 3.6 percent, the worst drop since the second quarter of 2020, as the company acknowledged customers are “grappling with uncertainty.”

“McDonald’s has a 70-year legacy of innovation, leadership, and proven agility, all of which give us confidence in our ability to navigate even the toughest of market conditions and gain market share,” McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a statement.

The restaurant’s sales at locations that have been open for at least a year fell 1 percent globally in the January-March period.

Wall Street had been expecting an increase of nearly 2 percent, according to analysts polled by FactSet.

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