American Express to cut 4 000 jobs

New York - American Express said  on Wednesday it planned to cut its workforce by 4 000 jobs to reduce costs.

Marina Hoffman Norville, a spokesperson for the US banking group and a leading issuer of credit cards, said it was taking a $313m charge in its fourth-quarter accounts to cover the severance costs of the layoffs, which amount to about 6% of its global staff.

American Express reported a 15% increase in earnings per share, to $1.39, in its fourth quarter, on a 7% rise in total revenues to $9.1bn.

"Solid results this quarter reflected the underlying themes that have characterized our performance throughout 2014: higher card member spending, increased loan balances, tight control of operating expenses and a substantial return of capital to shareholders through share repurchases," said Kenneth Chenault, chairperson and chief executive.