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Shares of the world's largest hamburger chain were down 1.4 percent at $79.25 in premarket trading. The stock hit an all-time intraday high of $80.94 on Tuesday.

"They're a victim of their own success during the recovery, and I guess one would be skeptical: Are they going to potentially lose share that they have gained?" said Oppenheimer analyst Matt DiFrisco, who has a "peer perform" rating on the stock. "That would be overreading these numbers."

He added, "People are going to look at this as the fast food demand remains relatively lackluster and it's very much in line with what you'd expect with the slow job recovery."

Despite the macroeconomic weakness that has dented overall demand, McDonald's has been taking U.S. market share from rivals like No. 2 hamburger chain Burger King, which is now private after its sale to 3G Capital.

McDonald's has lured diners with low-priced food on its U.S. Dollar Menu, renovated restaurants and, in some markets, longer operating hours. But analysts said the easy comparisons with a year ago were coming to an end.

Worldwide November sales at restaurants open at least 13 months were up 4.8 percent. In the United States, where high unemployment has taken a bite out of sales at fast-food chains, sales were up 4.9 percent.

Several analysts said Wall Street had expected global sales to rise 5.6 percent and U.S. sales to increase 5.1 percent. The U.S. market accounts for about 35 percent of McDonald's revenue.

Same-restaurant sales in Europe were up 4.9 percent, while sales in the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa unit rose 2.4 percent. Analysts had expected Europe sales to rise 4.9 percent and APMEA sales to jump 6.4 percent.

The company said Australia drove results in the APMEA region, and sales were positive in China and most other markets. But it cited weakness in Japan.

(Reporting by Ben Klayman; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and John Wallace)

The dollar extended gains on Wednesday on a spike in U.S. Treasury yields as Washington's proposed extension of tax cuts brightened the outlook for U.S. growth but raised fears of fiscal deterioration.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose to 3.25 percent, a level not seen since late June and beyond Tuesday's high of 3.18 percent.

Oil fell for a second day, dragged by the rise in the greenback and after an industry report showed a larger-than-expected increase in the country's gasoline stockpiles.

European shares were up 0.2 percent in morning trade, extending their week-long rally and flirting with a two-year high, as prospects for further economic recovery outweighed lingering worries about sovereign debt levels in the euro zone.

North Korea fired artillery shells in a suspected military drill on Wednesday, spooking markets on an already tense peninsula, as the top U.S. military official warned of more provocations from Pyongyang's "bad guy.

U.S. retailer Costco Wholesale Corp (COST.O) posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit as sales and traffic grew at its U.S. stores and the weakening dollar helped sales overseas.

CBS Corp (CBS.N) Chief Executive Leslie Moonves is optimistic about 2011 advertising trends and expects the brisk pacing of ad revenue growth to continue in the first quarter.

Microchip bellwether Texas Instruments Inc (TXN.N) said it was confident a recent demand correction would be short-lived and narrowed its quarterly earnings guidance in line with analysts' expectations.

Fortune Brands Inc (FO.N), which owns brands ranging from Jim Beam whiskey to Titleist golf balls and faucet manufacturer Moen, plans to split into three companies, a source familiar with the situation said on Tuesday. An announcement is expected on Wednesday, the source said.

U.S. private equity firm Blackstone Group (BX.N) is in talks to join a bid by China's Bright Food Group Co for U.S. healthcare products seller GNC Holdings Inc, a source familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.

Economic indicators on tap for Wednesday include the release of the Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Market Index for the week ended December 3.

U.S. stocks eked out a small gain on Tuesday as investors' enthusiasm over a tax cut extension deal was short-circuited by rising bond yields and reports regulators were stepping up an insider-trading probe.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI dropped 3.03 points, or 0.03 percent, to 11,359.16. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX added 0.63 points, or 0.05 percent, to 1,223.75. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC gained 3.57 points, or 0.14 percent, to 2,598.49.

(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Hans Peters)

Li Daokui, an academic member of the central bank's monetary policy committee, said that U.S. bond prices and the dollar would fall when the European economic situation stabilized.

"For now, market attention is still on Europe and for the coming 6-12 months, it will not shift to the United States," Li said, when asked about U.S. President Barack Obama's plan to extend tax cuts for all Americans.

"But we should be clear in our minds that the fiscal situation in the United States is much worse than in Europe. In one or two years, when the European debt situation stabilizes, attention of financial markets will definitely shift to the United States. At that time, U.S. Treasury bonds and the dollar will experience considerable declines."

U.S. Treasury prices fell sharply for a second day on Wednesday as the proposed tax deal sparked concerns over the government's ability to service its massive debt burden. Moody's Investors Service said it is worried the tax cuts could become permanent, hurting U.S. finances and credit ratings in the long run.

In Europe, Ireland's parliament passed the first in a series of resolutions underpinning its 2011 austerity budget on Tuesday, marking the first step in a lengthy approval process. But investors are now worried that the region's debt crisis could engulf Portugal next, or Spain.

China has a big stake in the performance of dollar assets. The country holds the world's biggest stock pile of foreign exchange reserves at $2.64 trillion and an estimated two-thirds of that is invested in dollar assets, including U.S. Treasuries.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), an arm of the central bank, is responsible for managing the reserves.

Li was speaking on the sidelines of a financial forum in Beijing. He sits on the monetary policy committee of the central bank but does not have real influence on key decisions on interest rates and the yuan.

ROBUST CHINA GROWTH

China's annual economic growth will exceed 9.5 percent in 2011 and will remain above 9 percent through the coming decade, Li told the forum.

The long-term growth outlook would be underpinned by the need to continue investing in infrastructure, he said.

"China has a vast domestic demand that is untapped, and that's the fundamental difference between China now and Japan in 1985," Li told a forum.

In addition, China would have to spend a lot on "low carbon" industries, lending more support for the economy, he said.

Li also predicted that global commodities prices, including oil, would rise sharply next year.

Speculation about a Chinese interest rate rise in the coming days has intensified after an official newspaper flagged the chances of an imminent move amid expectations of rising inflation in November.

Costco, which sells bulk packages of everything from diapers to detergent, said profit was $312 million, or 71 cents per share, in the fiscal first quarter ended November 21, compared with $266 million, or 60 cents per share last year.

Analysts on average forecast a profit of 69 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Last week, Costco, the largest U.S. warehouse club operator, said sales in the quarter rose 11 percent to $18.8 billion.

Sales at stores open at least a year rose 7 percent, helped by higher gasoline prices, the company said.

Issaquah, Washington-based Costco stock closed at $69.64, after touching a 52-week high of $70.06, on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Abhinav Sharma in Bangalore; Editing by Dan Lalor)