New results from Starbucks have eased investor's jitters, as the coffee giant is reporting that footfall in its stores increased steadily across the company's Christmas quarter.

The latest figures come after five straight quarters of declining customer numbers in its crucial US region. The company is crediting part of this growth to new product offerings.

Investors had worried that an increased emphasis on food had slowed down service at the coffee shops - but the quarterly report says that there were 9 million more transactions in Starbucks in the US when compared with the same 12-month period in 2013.

Among other factors, Starbucks Chief Financial Officer Scott Maw said that new products including a chestnut praline latte and Teavana herbal teas had been very popular, and contributed to the increase in footfall. 

US Starbucks cafés that have been open for 13 months or more saw a sales bump of 5 percent. The coffee shop giant posted quarterly net income of $983m (€875m). These numbers pushed the its share price up by 4.1 percent.

The company also announced that director Kevin Johnson is to become Starbucks president and chief operating officer as of March 1st.

Starbucks has 21,000 outlets in 68 countries - it recently expanded to Colombia and Vietnam. Ireland's first Starbucks opened in Dundrum Town Centre in 2005 - its presence in Dublin has grown steadily since then. It also recently revealed that the a new outlet is to open in Cork's city centre.