Overseas sales boost McDonald's

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US fast-food chain McDonald's has reported higher-than-expected profits in the second quarter, helped by sales from overseas outlets.

Strong European demand helped profits hit $1.2bn (Â£600m) for the three months to 30 June, against a loss of $711.7m a year earlier.

Another factor helping earnings was the sale of its stake in the Pret A Manger sandwich chain.

Revenues across the group rose by 4% to $6.07bn, ahead of expectations.

Global same-store sales, referring to those outlets open for at least 13 months, rose by 6.1%.

European same-store sales rose 7.4%, and in Asia/Pacific, the Middle East and Africa the rise was 8.8%.

The US meanwhile saw a sales increase of 3.4% for the same period.