Starbucks plans to expand

SHANGHAI: Starbucks, the world's largest coffeehouse company, said yesterday that the recent closure of its 661 underperforming cafes in the US and Australia would not affect the company's sustainable expansion in China.

The Seattle-based coffee giant has 660 chains in China, of which approximately 330 operate across 26 cities in China.

"China is now the fourth largest market of Starbucks outside the US, following Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom," said Li Jing, Starbucks' public manager in Greater China, adding that the company aimed to extend its expansion into more second and third-tier cities in China later this year.