A MONOPOLY game promotion and strong sales of basic menu items such as the Big Mac helped push a key sales figure up 5.6 percent in the US for McDonald's Corp during October.

Its increase in sales at stores open at least 13 months was a marked improvement from the same month last year, when the metric dipped 0.1 percent in part because of tough comparisons.

It was only the third time the monthly figure hadn't climbed in 6 1/2 years.

The world's biggest hamburger chain yesterday said worldwide sales at restaurants open at least 13 months climbed 6.5 percent. That was slightly above McDonald's prior forecast for an increase between 5 percent and 6 percent.

This figure is a key indicator of a restaurant operator's health because it gauges results at existing restaurants rather than newly opened ones. In the US, McDonald's said other popular menu items included Chicken McNuggets, McGriddles and McCafe beverages, all of which came with pieces for the Monopoly game.

The company has outpaced rivals such as Burger King Corp and Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc in the weak economy partly because of its low cost value menu items.

Its success has not been limited to the US. Monthly results were also healthy in Europe, where the sales metric climbed 5.8 percent. Among the strongest performing countries were France, the UK and Russia.

The figure increased 5.6 percent for the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific, with China, Japan and Australia reporting sales growth.