Lindsay James, investment strategist at Quilter, said that the impact of the war so far in the UK has been largely limited to higher petrol and diesel prices, but “every day that passes without a resumption of supply sees the risk of physical shortages and steeper price rises on a range of goods increasing”.

Yum Brands on Wednesday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations, fueled by another strong quarter for Taco Bell.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

• Earnings per share: $1.50 adjusted vs. $1.38 expected
• Revenue: $2.06 billion vs. $2.04 billion expected

Yum reported first-quarter net income of $432 million, or $1.55 per share, up from $253 million, or 90 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding charges related to its strategic review of Pizza Hut and other items, the company earned $1.50 per share.

Net sales climbed 15% to $2.06 billion, lifted by higher revenue from company-owned restaurants. Last year, the company bought more than 100 Taco Bell locations across the Southeast with a goal of accelerating development and profitability.

Across Yum, global same-store sales rose 3%, driven by growth at Taco Bell, the gem of the company’s portfolio.

Taco Bell’s same-store sales increased 8%, topping Wall Street’s estimates of 5.6% growth, according to a survey by StreetAccount.

“Taco Bell delivered an outstanding 8% same-store sales growth, meaningfully ahead of the [quick-service restaurant] industry, building off a very strong Q1 same-store sales growth rate in 2025,” Yum CEO Chris Turner said in a statement.

Yum also plans to expand its use of artificial intelligence-driven A/B testing for Taco Bell’s drive-thru lanes, following a successful pilot in the first quarter. The technology lets Taco Bell change the layout, visuals and content shown to cars in the drive-thru lanes, allowing the chain to learn quickly about what messages resonate more with customers.

“If I think about our philosophy as it relates to AI, first and foremost, we want to use AI to drive growth,” Turner said on the company’s earnings conference call.

KFC reported same-store sales growth of 2%, shy of the 2.5% increase projected by StreetAccount. While the fried chicken chain’s international business is considered one of Yum’s “growth engines,” its U.S. business has struggled in recent years, buckling under increased competition and consumers’ value expectations.

KFC U.S. system sales fell 2% during the first quarter. Yum is no longer sharing the market’s quarterly same-store sales, signaling that the chain’s U.S. business is now considered immaterial to the company’s broader results. Its home market is now KFC’s third-largest region by system sales, falling behind China and Europe. However, Turner said that KFC U.S. is still “strategically important” for Yum.

To win back customers, KFC is taking some cues from Taco Bell’s successful playbook by leaning into innovation and affordability. It’s also been expanding a spinoff chain that focuses on chicken tenders called Saucy, which provides the broader KFC business with ideas about what menu items are resonating with diners.

Similarly, Pizza Hut saw stronger results outside of its home market. The struggling pizza chain reported flat same-store sales globally, although its international business saw same-store sales rise 2% in the quarter. Its U.S. same-store sales shrank 4%.

Analysts were projecting global same-store sales declines of 0.7% for Pizza Hut, according to StreetAccount.

In November, Yum said it would explore strategic options for the chain, which has long been the laggard of its portfolio. Several private equity firms, including Apollo Global Management and Sycamore Partners, are among the potential buyers vying for Pizza Hut, Reuters reported earlier this month.

While Yum did not provide an update on the strategic review on Wednesday, its earnings release did include a bullet point showing the company’s system sales, unit count and core operating profit excluding Pizza Hut.

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded nearly 1 per cent on Wednesday, helped by bargain buying in FMCG, auto and telecom shares, upbeat earnings sentiment and gains across Asian markets.Traders said signs of possible de-escalation in geopolitical tensions also supported sentiment.In a volatile session, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 609.45 points, or 0.79 per cent, to close at 77,496.36. During the day, it surged 1,095.60 points, or 1.42 per cent, to touch 77,982.51.The NSE Nifty rose 181.95 points, or 0.76 per cent, to settle at 24,177.65, according to PTI.

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Maruti advanced 2.82 per cent after the country’s largest carmaker reported a record annual consolidated net profit of Rs 14,679.5 crore for FY26, up 1.24 per cent year-on-year, driven by its highest-ever annual sales of more than 24.22 lakh units, helped by GST rate reduction.In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi, Shanghai’s SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended higher. Japanese markets were shut for a holiday.“The core driver of today’s strength remained earnings. Strong results from key companies reinforced confidence in underlying domestic demand and balance sheet resilience. This fundamental support, combined with easing geopolitical concerns, helped markets shift focus away from macro stress toward corporate performance,” Hariprasad K, Research Analyst and Founder, Livelong Wealth, said, PTI quoted.“Hopes of potential de-escalation in geopolitical tensions helped stabilise crude oil expectations, which is critical for India’s macro outlook,” he added.European markets were trading lower, while US markets had ended lower on Tuesday.Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 2.85 per cent to USD 114.4 per barrel.“Despite weak global cues, elevated crude prices, and a depreciating INR, India’s equity markets rebounded from recent lows as investors used the correction to add exposure, supported by better-than-expected earnings despite geopolitical uncertainty.“Gains were led by FMCG, auto, and realty stocks on strong results and positive commentary, while financials lagged due to regulatory tightening and provisioning concerns,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 2,103.74 crore on Tuesday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,712.01 crore, as per exchange data.