NEW YORK, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Fast-food giant McDonald's Corporation on Wednesday reported that its revenue rose 3 percent year on year to 7.08 billion U.S. dollars in the third quarter of this year, though the figure fell short of the 7.1 billion dollars expected.

Its global comparable sales increased 3.6 percent in the third quarter, while the comparable sales in the United States increased 2.4 percent.

The global systemwide sales, which include sales at all restaurants, whether owned and operated by the company or by franchisees, were over 36 billion dollars in the third quarter, an increase of 8 percent year on year.

The third-quarter net income came in at 2.28 billion dollars, up from 2.26 billion dollars a year earlier, and the diluted earnings per share were 3.18 dollars, up from 3.13 dollars.

McDonald's Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a statement released Wednesday that the third-quarter results are "a testament to our ability to deliver sustainable growth even in a challenging environment."