American Express 2002 Annual Report Download - page 36

I34 AXP IFINANCIAL REVIEW
exposures. The extent of the company’s unhedged exposures varies over time based on current foreign exchange and interest
rates, equity market levels, the macro-economic environment and the hedging impact on particular business objectives.
Management considers the risk of liquidity and cost of funds from the company’s financing activities. Management believes a
decline in the company’s long-term credit rating by two levels could result in the company having to significantly reduce its
commercial paper and other short-term borrowings and replace them, in part, by drawing on existing credit lines. Remaining
borrowing requirements would be addressed through other means such as additional securitizations, increased deposit taking
and the sale of investment securities. This would result in higher interest expense on the company’s commercial paper and other
debt, as well as higher fees related to unused lines of credit. The company believes a two level downgrade is unlikely due to its
capital position and growth prospects.
The company’s foreign exchange exposures arise primarily from cross-currency charges made by cardmembers, as well as
from cash flow and balance sheet exposures denominated in foreign currencies. The company primarily uses spot and forward
foreign exchange contracts to manage the cross border transaction exposures resulting from cardmember cross border spend-
ing in which the merchant transaction currency differs from the billing currency.
In addition, the company funds a portion of its local currency operations by raising U.S. dollar funding and converting U.S.
dollars to local currency through foreign exchange derivative contracts. These foreign exchange instruments are sometimes
combined with interest rate swaps to achieve the desired level of local market interest rate risk. Finally, the U.S. dollar value
of anticipated future earnings in foreign currencies is economically managed from time to time using foreign exchange
forward contracts.
The company also uses master netting agreements which allow the company to settle multiple contracts with a single counter-
party in one net receipt or payment in the event of counterparty default.
The risk management sections for each segment include sensitivity analyses of different types of market risk and estimate the
effects of hypothetical sudden and sustained changes in the applicable market conditions on the ensuing year’s earnings,
based on year-end positions. The market changes, assumed to occur as of year-end, are a 100 basis point increase in market
interest rates, a 10 percent strengthening of the U.S. dollar versus all other currencies, and a 10 percent decline in the value
of equity securities under management at AEFA. Computations of the prospective effects of hypothetical interest rate,
foreign exchange rate and equity market changes are based on numerous assumptions, including relative levels of market
interest rates, foreign exchange rates and equity prices, as well as the levels of assets and liabilities. The hypothetical
changes and assumptions will be different from what actually occurs in the future. Furthermore, the computations do not
incorporate actions that management could take if the hypothetical market changes actually occur. As a result, actual
earnings consequences will differ from those quantified.
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION — MANAGED NET REVENUES
The following supplemental information is presented on the basis used by management to evaluate operations. It differs in
two respects from the accompanying financial statements, which are prepared in accordance with GAAP. First, revenues are
presented as if there had been no asset securitizations at TRS. This format is generally termed on a managed basis, as further
discussed in the TRS section of the Financial Review. Second, revenues are considered net of AEFA’s provisions for losses and
benefits for annuities, insurance and investment certificate products, which are essentially spread businesses, as further dis-
cussed in the AEFA section of the Financial Review. A reconciliation of consolidated revenues from a GAAP to a net managed
basis is as follows:
Years Ended December 31, (Millions) 2002 2001 2000
GAAP revenues $ 23,807 $ 22,582 $ 23,675
Effect of TRS securitizations 948 743 321
Effect of AEFA provisions for losses and benefits (1,954) (1,966) (1,911)
Managed net revenues $ 22,801 $ 21,359 $ 22,085