Louisville, Ky.-based Yum! Brands Inc. rode an 80-percent improvement in first-quarter operating profit in China to an 18.4-percent rise in overall net income to $399 million for the March 22-ended period. Same-store sales rebounded 11 percent at KFC in China.

The popularity of the A&W Restaurants chain in the United States peaked in the 1960s and 1970s, when the number of locations - many with carhop service - swelled to 2,400, so it is no wonder that the brand stirs nostalgia in the baby boomer generation. But now A&W, which has about 700 restaurants, wants to make an impression on those boomers' children, and the brand is increasingly turning to social media to do so.

Airlines receive the lowest customer satisfaction ratings among all travel-related industries, according to a new report released Tuesday. For the second year in a row, airlines earned a score of 69 out of 100 points, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index travel report. That is among the lowest of any industry or agency, hovering above only the IRS, subscription television providers and social media sites

The price of "House of Cards" is about to go up as the Netflix-HBO rivalry escalates. Sometime this quarter Netflix plans to raise its monthly prices for new customers by $1 to $2, the company said on Monday. People who already subscribe to the streaming video service would keep their current $7.99-a-month rate "for a generous time period."

While it may seem that advertising is everywhere, one place marketers have not infiltrated is the popular calendar software on computers, smartphones and tablets. But now, in what Burt's Bees says is a marketing first, the natural personal care brand is introducing promotional messages that will appear as appointments in electronic calendars like those by Microsoft, Apple, Google and Yahoo.

Six Smashburger units in the San Diego area, along with a 10-unit development agreement, are scheduled for auction on May 22 in the bankruptcy of franchisee SoCal Eats LLC. The franchise operator filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Jan. 8 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California.

The Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis announced a major overhaul of its operations on Tuesday, marked by an agreement to buy the cancer drug business of its British rival GlaxoSmithKline for up to $16 billion. The deals come amid a flurry of eye-popping transactions in the drug sector in recent months and speculation about even more to come.

Millennials love to visit convenience stores, but they are more interested in purchasing in-store merchandise than motor fuels. "Convenience Store News" recently conducted it annual "Realities of the Aisle" consumer research study and found that while nearly three-quarters of all respondents said they purchased motor fuels in the past month, the number slips to 70% when looking solely at Millennials (aged 18-34).

After flexing their influence with respect to entertainment content-backing Phil Robertson of A&E's Duck Dynasty after his anti-gay comments and filling movie theaters for Bible-themed movies like God's Not Dead and Noah-now conservative Christian activists have some major brands in their sights. Nike, Walgreens, Abercrombie & Fitch and Victoria's Secret are among the companies seen as "strongly leaning against a Biblical worldview."

Seeking to quell a consumer backlash,General Mills has abandoned a new legal policy that told consumers they gave up their right to sue the company if they engaged in online activities such as joining its online community, subscribing to its email newsletters or printing a coupon. Instead, consumers would have had to settle disputes with arbitration or informal negotiations.