Yum Brands China business shows signs of recovery in Q4

The China business of Yum Brands Inc. posted a 7% system sales increase – which adjusts for currency fluctuation and includes franchise sales – and 1.9% top-line growth overall, among other signs of continued recovery, The Wall Street Journal reported. It saw a 2% increase at restaurants open for at least a year, the second consecutive quarterly increase of the key metric. Yum, which plans to spin off its China business by the year’s end, reported an overall profit of US$275 million for the period ended December 26, or 63 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier loss of US$86 million, or 20 cents a share.