Ever expanding, Jollibee income up 16.3%

Fast-food giant Jollibee Foods Corp. grew its nine-month net profit by 16.3 percent year-on-year to P5.11 billion on higher earnings from its expanding restaurant network worldwide.

Jollibee, now the largest Asian food service company, saw a 21.1-percent year-on-year growth in net profit to P1.62 billion in the third quarter alone.

System-wide sales, a measure of all sales to consumers from its network, grew by 14.5 percent year-on-year in the nine-month period to reach P123.38 billion.  Of these, P42.3 billion was attained in the third quarter, growing by 16.5 percent year-on-year.

Group-wide revenues reached P94.51 billion for the nine-month period, up by 15 percent. Third quarter revenues rose by 17.7 percent year-on-year to P32.67 billion.

The firm opened 265 new stores during the period, a 32-percent improvement. —DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA