(Yicai Global) Aug. 8 -- McDonald's Corp. [NYSE:MCD] plans to add 250 restaurants in China this year, making the country McDonald's largest market outside of the US.

In January, Chinese investment company CITIC Group Corp.'s CITIC Ltd. [HK:0267] (CITIC), CITIC Capital Holdings Ltd. (CITIC Capital), the Carlyle Group LP [NASDAQ:CG] and McDonald's jointly announced the formation of a strategic partnership and a new company that would acquire McDonald's businesses in mainland China and Hong Kong for up to USD2.08 billion (HKD16.14 billion).

The transaction has obtained Chinese regulatory approval and has been successfully completed, McDonald's China said today. McDonald's also published its five-year expansion plan for mainland China. The company aims to maintain double-digit sales growth in the market in each of the next five years and increase its restaurant numbers from 2,500 to 4,500 by 2022, when some 45 percent of McDonald's in China will be in third- and fourth-tier cities and over 75 percent of its restaurants will offer delivery services.

CITIC and CITIC Capital hold a combined controlling stake of 52 percent in the new company, while Carlyle and McDonald's have interests of 28 percent and 20 percent, respectively.

McDonald's entered the mainland Chinese market in 1990. China is McDonald's third-largest and fastest growing market.