Jan 29 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld, the

operator of McDonald's in India, reported a 59% drop in

third-quarter profit on Wednesday, as expenses rose amid store

count expansion and higher advertising spending.

Quick service restaurant operators have seen demand

falter as persistently high food inflation and subdued wage

growth have led consumers to cut back on discretionary spending.

Westlife, which operates more than 400 McDonald's

restaurants in west and south India, is facing high competitive

intensity, as both regional players and international

franchisees vie for market share with store expansions and

aggressively low-priced menu items.

As a result, the company has ramped up promotional spending

and store count expansion.

Its expenses rose 11.7% year-on-year in the third quarter.

Consolidated profit after tax fell to 70.1 million rupees

($810,123.66) for the three months to Dec. 31, lower than 172.5

million rupees a year ago.

Westlife added 15 restaurants in the third quarter, taking

its total store count to 421 restaurants and launched value

combinations, that include a burger and a beverage, for less

than $1.

Same store sales grew 2.8% year-on-year amid soft

consumption trends, the company said.

Revenue for the third quarter rose 9% year-on-year to 6.54

billion rupees.

($1 = 86.5300 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ananta Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank

Dhaniwala)