Big mac

The oracles who read economic tea leaves have a host of conventional forecasting tools, but housing starts and job growth figures can only tell you so much. To cut through the haze of data, sometimes it takes an unconventional indicator -- for example, the Hair Index.

McDonald's, the world's largest hamburger chain, said global comparable sales grew 6.5% in October on strong performance of some local and value-menu items, as well as new offerings and store renovations.

Think the world has enough McDonald's (MCD) restaurants? Think again. The fast-food giant plans to open 1,000 new stores worldwide next year as part of plan to become an even more dominant force in the industry. The company also plans to remodel 2,300 existing stores, introduce new menu items and...

On Tuesday, McDonald's (MCD) announced its plans to leave Iceland. This weekend, the global restaurant's three franchises, all located in Reykjavik, will close their doors, as the country's weak economy has made Big Mac's prohibitively expensive. McDonald's has only been in Iceland for a few...

Shares of Travelers Cos. (TRV) shot up more than 4 percent in pre-market action after the insurance giant Thursday reported a much higher third quarter profit, earning $935 million, or $1.65 a share. Per-share earnings far exceeded a consensus estimate of $1.30 a share, according to a poll of 15...

McDonalds (MCD) has been vilified by a number of movies and books, including Fast Food Nation. The company is a favorite punching bag for environmental and nutritional activists. While Big Mac's are hardly health food, the company has diversified its menu to offer healthier choices. McDonald's has...

I consider myself a moderately effective text messager. While my training as an editor and former English teacher means that I have a hard time using alpha-numerical shortcuts like "gr8!" or "U no what I mean," I can still express myself fairly effectively and quickly. That having been said, I must...