McDonald's has announced a five-plan for large-scale expansion in China.

The fast food giant will add 250 new restaurants in the country annually, with the ultimate aim to make China the world-famous chain's second-largest market after the US.

A further 250 outlets in Hong Kong and South Korea are also planned for the same period.

Steve Easterbrook, McDonald's President and CEO, said:

"Asia represents a significant area of opportunity for McDonald's to blend our global quality standards with local insights and expertise from partners who share our vision and values.

"This will allow McDonald's to accelerate our growth and scale faster across diverse markets placing us closer to our customers and the communities we serve.

"We're in the midst of transforming our business and taking a strategic and thoughtful approach to enhance our ability to grow around the world. These actions build on our turnaround efforts and will advance local ownership, enable faster decision-making and achieve restaurant growth".

The company currently has over 2,200 outlets in China.

Both McDonald's and KFC and Pizza Hut owner Yum Brands have faced increasing competition in the region from cheaper local rivals, and have been trying to repair customer relations since food safety scares in 2014.

Thus far, McDonald's has managed to bounce back more successfully than Yum.