McDonald's pledges $8.5 billion franchisiee support under NEXT strategy

McDonald's will spend about $8.5 billion through 2036 on rent relief and capital improvements for franchisees under its NEXT strategy. The plan targets market-share gains in chicken and beverages, operating margin expansion, and AI-driven restaurant technology. CEO Chris Kempczinski said customer-traffic growth in major markets is expected to be flat, so the company must capture more share. The pledge is on top of baseline annual capex of ~$3 billion. Shares fell 4%–6% on the announcement as investors weighed higher near-term spending.