McDonald's Reveals April Global Sales Miss

Hit by a slowdown in sales in the Asia-Pacific, McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) disclosed on Tuesday a weaker-than-expected 3.3% rise in April same-store sales.

Shares of the world’s largest hamburger chain slumped close to 3% in reaction to the monthly figures.

Oak Brook, Ill.-based McDonald’s reported a 3.3% gain in global comparable store sales for last month, coming in shy of the Street’s view of about 4.3%.

U.S. same-store sales matched the global view, while European sales managed a 3.5% rise despite an apparent double-dip recession in the eurozone. All four major markets in Europe --  France, the U.K., Germany and Russia -- posted sales growth.

But McDonald’s was struck by trouble in its Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa segment, where same-store sales inched up just 1.1% amid an unspecified decline in Japanese sales.

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In a statement, McDonald’s CEO Jim Skinner acknowledged a “challenging global economic environment.”

Shares of the blue-chip company fell 2.52% to $93.10 ahead of the open on Tuesday, putting them on pace to extend their 2012 decline of about 5%.