[Non-English content] Thank you very much for taking time out of your busy schedules to join our online financial results briefing today. Before I begin today's presentation, I would like to express our heartfelt sympathy to all those affected by the recent Kumamoto earthquake. We sincerely hope for a swift recovery so the people of the region can return to their normal lives as soon as possible. In the affected areas, our franchisees are working diligently toward reopening restaurants, with the safety of our customers and crew members as the highest priority. I would like to express my sincere respect and gratitude to everyone involved in these recovery efforts. I would also like to thank our suppliers for their tireless efforts to maintain a stable supply of products during this challenging time.
As part of our support for the affected communities, we are making a corporate donation and conducting fundraising activities at McDonald's restaurants across Japan. Through these efforts, we hope to deliver the support and goodwill of the McDonald's family and our customers nationwide to those impacted by the disaster. Especially in times like this, we are committed to provide every possible support, guided by our Three-Legged Stool philosophy, so that franchisees, suppliers, and the company can work together to enable our restaurants to continue to serve their local communities and contribute to the region's recovery. I'll begin by presenting the highlights of our financial results for the first half of 2026.
System-wide sales were JPY 464.3 billion, up 8% year-on-year, with an increase in same-store sales of 5.9%. This achievement marks positive growth for 43 consecutive quarters since quarter four 2015. Restaurant development is progressing in accordance with the Medium-Term Management Plan with steady optimizations of the restaurant portfolio.
We believe this growth is a result of our continued efforts to enhance the customer's experience, listening to feedback, improving QSC and convenience, and actively investing in marketing, restaurants, and our people. These efforts have been well received by a growing number of customers. These achievements were made possible by the efforts of everyone who supports McDonald's, including our owner-operators, suppliers, restaurant managers, restaurant staff, crew members, and all those involved in the McDonald's system. I'd like to thank you from the bottom of my heart. With the ongoing inflation in ingredients, energy and labor cost, we implemented price revisions in February 2026 so that we could continue offering restaurant experiences that satisfies our customers. As same-store sales have remained solid following the revisions, we believe our efforts to deliver value beyond price are resonating with customers.
We'll keep meeting our customers' expectations for taste, quality, hospitality, speed, and delivering value beyond price so that customers continue to choose McDonald's. Now, Mandai-san, will brief you on the details of our earnings results for the first half of 2026.
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Let me update on where we are in the second year of our Medium-Term Management Plan . To continue being the most beloved restaurant brand in Japan, we aim to achieve further growth through strengthening and expanding our franchise business that is rooted in the community. As specific growth strategies, we are focusing on the three areas of Menu & Value , Restaurant Portfolio & Digital, and Sustainability & People. I'll explain our activities from the first half of the year in the following slides. First, to start with Menu & Value . Alongside our popular core menu items that enjoy broad support across generations, we have introduced engaging promotions featuring seasonal and topical themes, while implementing initiatives that enable customers to connect more closely with the McDonald's brand.
This February, we implemented price revision to enable our franchisees and company-operated restaurants to continue making proactive investments despite the cost pressure they are facing. Meanwhile, we have continued initiatives that offer a sense of value, such as HiruMac, Set 500, and Tokunin arudo. To meet the needs of a broader range of customers and cater to a variety of dining occasions, we are working to offer limited menu items that bring a sense of seasonality and fun to our customers for each of the four seasons here in Japan, in addition to our standard menu items unique to McDonald's. Since June, as an official sponsor and restaurant partner of the FIFA World Cup, we provided special experiences for customers to enjoy before and after matches, as well as moments to share with family and friends.
We have also placed a focus on menu items by day parts, creating occasions for customers to visit our restaurants throughout the day. These initiatives demonstrate that McDonald's is more than just a place to eat. We are a brand that delivers enjoyment and meaningful experiences in our customers' everyday lives. We believe this leads to increased visit frequency and has helped us remain a brand of choice for our customers. Next is Restaurant Portfolio & Digital. Looking ahead, upgrading our restaurant portfolio is essential to further enhancing the restaurant experience for both customers and crew. Customer preferences have become increasingly diverse, with more ways to enjoy McDonald's, including counter service, drive-thru, delivery, and mobile ordering. Designing restaurants that respond to these changing preferences not only enhances customer experience, but also helps create a more comfortable and efficient crew working environment.
For these reasons, we view restaurant investment as a key long-term growth driver and have continued to make these investments in a disciplined and planned manner. The Medium-Term Management Plan targets 100 net new restaurants and 1,000 restaurant remodels over the three-year period from 2025 to 2027. Progress is largely in line with plan. During the first half, we opened 35 new restaurants and closed 22. Our restaurant replacement strategy is advancing smoothly, and we are making steady progress towards building an optimal restaurant portfolio. Remodeling is also moving ahead largely as planned. When we expand restaurant capacity, introducing touch-panel ordering terminals, and switch to more efficient layouts, we are creating restaurant environments that are more comfortable for customers and easier for crew. Remodeling is not about boosting short-term sales.
It is a growth investment designed to ensure we continue to provide customers with a better restaurant experience over the next 10 years. Going forward, we will steadily carry out new restaurant launches and remodeling to enhance profitability and restaurant experiences, while carefully monitoring each restaurant's trade area, capacity, and investment efficiency. In Digital, the proportion of customers using mobile ordering and delivery to place orders is increasing steadily. In addition, with the expansion of our digital member base, such as My McDonald's Rewards, our connections with customers are growing deeper. The use of digital not only improves convenience for customers but also leads to more efficient restaurant operations and the ability to offer suggestions tailored to each and every customer. Going forward, by combining digital with the heartfelt hospitality of our crew, we'll continue to deliver an even better restaurant experience for our customers.
Now, I'll report on Sustainability & People. We continue to advance initiatives to reduce the use of virgin plastics. Strawless lids have been rolled out across all restaurants, while nearly all restaurants have moved to takeaway bags made from biomass materials. Our sustainability initiatives not only reduce environmental impact but also help control restaurant operating costs. For example, through the replacement of air- conditioning systems at company-operated restaurants in 2025, we achieved an approximately 10% reduction in their electricity usage. In this way, we'll continue to steadily pursue initiatives that fulfill our environmental responsibilities while achieving sustainable business growth. Last is People. People are the foundation of McDonald's business, and we continue to focus on enhancing engagement. We believe that providing the best employee experience is a critical objective as it underpins everything we do. Employee satisfaction continues to remain high.
We believe this is a result of our ongoing efforts to create an environment where our crew can thrive, including digital learning and training programs, flexible work schedules, and improvements to the restaurant work environment. In crew hiring, the number of applications has continued to increase compared to the previous year. Going forward, we will continue to provide growth opportunities for all employees and strive to create an even more inclusive and supportive workplace where everyone can thrive. McDonald's has grown through its franchise business. Our owner-operators have a keen understanding of the customers and crew in their areas and are conducting business that is deeply rooted in the community. This is one of the main reasons McDonald's continues to be loved across the country. Today, our business is operated by more than 200 owner-operators, and our franchise restaurant numbers and owner-operator numbers are steadily increasing.
Our franchising strategy does not aim to simply increase the number of franchise restaurants. As with our existing owner-operators, we expect new owner-operators to uphold McDonald's high standard of quality and operate restaurants that are deeply rooted in their local communities. The key is to enable these qualified owner-operators to steadily operate and expand their businesses. Company-operated restaurants also play an important role, such as developing talent, accumulating know-how in restaurant operations, and verifying new initiatives while carefully assessing the characteristics and growth potential of each restaurant and trade area, as well as business circumstances of our owner-operators. We will strengthen and expand our franchise business at an appropriate pace. That concludes my remarks. Next, Mandai-san will explain our full- year earnings forecast for fiscal 2026, along with our growth investments and shareholder returns.