Fast food chain McDonald’s plans to shut down 74 outlets in Japan after seeing a sharp decline in footfalls.

McDonald’s Japan, with 3170 outlets across the country as at October, has also lowered its earnings forecast for the year. It now says it expects a net income of 5 billion yen ($48 million) by the end of the year, which is 57 per cent lower than its previous forecast of 11.7 billion yen.

The forecast has been made after sales dropped by around 50 per cent in five months to November.

“The number of customers during the first quarter was well below the company’s expectations,” it says.