American Express 1998 Annual Report Download - page 13

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11
emerging markets. In early 1999, we began selling
the new euro-denominated Travelers Cheque, one
of the first payment instruments denominated in
the new pan-European currency. Gift Cheque
sales increased 26 percent during the year.
Although we continued to gain share, Travelers
Cheques do not represent a high-growth business.
We continue to focus on controlling expenses and
have realized benefits from combining facilities
and leveraging marketing and sales initiatives with
American Express Bank.
INTERNATIONAL CARD AND TRAVEL
We strengthened our international card business
during the year. New products helped to increase
the total number of cards in force and the charge
volume billed on those cards. We launched more
than 30 new proprietary card products outside
client volumes in Personal Financial Services,
which include loans, deposits and mutual funds,
increased 23 percent.
The Bank’s Global Trading unit benefited
from volatility in financial and foreign exchange
markets, and turned in excellent results.
Our long-term focus for the Bank will be on
individual clients. The private banking and
personal financial services we provide to these
clients offer the most financial potential and tie in
most directly with the rest of the Company.
In 1998, we began reporting Travelers Cheque
results with those of the Bank. Worldwide sales of
Travelers Cheques were $24 billion, down from
$25 billion a year ago. However, we continued to
gain sales from competitors, resulting in a slight
increase in our total share of the industry. We also
enjoyed significantly higher sales in a number of
One of the ways in which American Express is
expanding its card and travel business out-
side the U.S. is by providing a broader range of
product choice to our customers.We introduced a
number of new proprietary card products in international mar-
kets in 1998, including an American Express Gold Card in
India, a co-branded card with Cheung Kong real estate hold-
ings in Hong Kong, a Platinum Card in Brazil and a Blue Card,
offering a cash rebate on purchases, in Canada.