中國網站品牌欄目（頻道）
受金融危機影響，全球快餐巨頭麥當勞決定從11月1日起關閉在冰島的所有門店，并且表示沒有再回冰島開店的計劃。自消息公布以來，大批冰島民眾蜂擁至麥當勞各家門店，排隊搶購各式漢堡，其招牌產品“巨無霸”漢堡甚至一度脫銷。在冰島運作的麥當勞快餐店，大部分物料，包括產品包裝、肉類、蔬菜、芝士和各種獨特醬汁等，都必須從德國進口。冰島克朗（冰島貨幣）匯價的大幅走貶，對于原料主要依靠進口的冰島麥當勞來說，勢必會陷入經營困境。
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A stack of McDonald's Big Macs and French Fries. Iceland's two McDonald's restaurants closed on November 1 due to rising costs brought on by the country's economic collapse, the Icelandic operator of the US fast-food chain said on Monday. |
Thousands of Icelanders lined up at McDonald's restaurants to order their last Big Macs before the U.S. fast-food chain abandons the crisis-hit island at midnight Saturday due to soaring costs.
The world's largest fast-food company said earlier this week that all three of its restaurants in Iceland, operated by franchisee Jon Ogmundsson, would shut down October 31.
The outlets have been packed since the announcement, with lines at one restaurant on the east side of the city backing up out the door and onto the street.
At lunchtime Friday the outlet's parking lot was full and staff inside were working furiously to keep up with the soaring demand.
"It's my last chance for a while to have a real Big Mac," Siggi, a 28-year old salesman waiting in line, told Reuters.
"With the economy as it is, I won't be traveling abroad any time soon," he added. "It's not that I'm a big fan of McDonald's, but a Big Mac now and then adds to variety."
Ogmundsson, who will continue running the restaurants under a different name after taking down the golden arches, said he had even run out of Big Macs for a few hours Thursday.
"Sales have not just gone up," Ogmundsson was quoted saying in the local media. "It's gone turbo."
Ogmundsson said he managed to catch up with the surge in demand and had been selling about 10,000 burgers a day -- more than ever before.
Iceland has been reeling from the effects of the financial crisis since October 2008, when its banks collapsed in the space of a week under the weight of billions of dollars in debt.
The fall of the banks sapped confidence in Iceland's economy and sent its currency, the crown, into freefall. McDonald's said the crown's weakness was part of the reason for its withdrawal.
McDonald's requires all resources for its restaurants, including packaging, meat, vegetables and cheese, to be imported. The Icelandic market is too small to produce the required products.
Ogmundsson said the restaurants imported their goods from Germany, but costs had doubled because the country's falling krona currency had made imports prohibitively expensive.
McDonald's said it would not seek to come back to Iceland.
In a nearby stationary store, Thora Sigurdardottir, a 35-year old nursing assistant, said she had no intention of going for a final McDonald's meal.
"Good riddance," she said.
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(Agencies)
（英語點津 Helen 編輯）
