• Wall Street Journal, Wednesday, July 15, 2009 10:45 AM

The seemingly ubiquitous price cuts that restaurant chains have been offering in recent months are not only failing to boost bottom lines, they're also failing to attract as many customers as expected, Julie Jargon reports. "We've been hearing from a lot of restaurant management teams that discounting wasn't driving the traffic they hoped for," says Barclays Capital analyst Jeffrey Bernstein.

Yum Brands says earnings in its fiscal second-quarter rose 10%, excluding an acquisition-related gain, but same-store sales in the U.S. declined 1% due to an 8% decline at Pizza Hut despite discounts for online pizza orders and other deals.

Burger King, meanwhile, says it will mail coupons to 80 million households allowing them to buy its double cheeseburger for $1. Franchisees have twice rejected the $1 proposal.

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