Yum plans to triple China restaurants

Yum Brands said it can triple the number of restaurants in its China division, which is being spun off after a string of sales setbacks that have raised the risk profile of the company’s top profit generator. Yum opened its first KFC in China near Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1987, beating major rivals to the country. It has been China’s biggest Western restaurant operator for years and now has more than 7,300 KFC and Pizza Hut outlets there. But according to Reuters, Yum China’s once-predictable growth has been called into question. It has grappled with internal and external challenges in recent years, including marketing blunders, rising competition, bird flu outbreaks, food safety problems and slowing economic growth.