American Express 2009 Annual Report Download - page 10

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BILLED BUSINESS
(in billions)
0908070605
$484
$561
$647
$683
$620
CARDS-IN-FORCE
(in millions)
0908070605
71.0
78.0
86.4
92.4
87.9
08
Cardmember Spending
For the year, spending on American Express cards
fell 9 percent to $620 billion on broad-based
declines among consumers, small businesses and
corporations. Billed business was down 10 percent
in the U.S. and 8 percent internationally.
While the dollar volume of spending declined,
our total number of transactions was essentially
unchanged. That means American Express
cardmembers were loyal to our brand, taking our
cards out of their wallets just as often as before.
They were simply spending less overall as they
became more careful about managing their money.
We think this validates our emphasis on nancial
responsibility, premium value and superior service.
Through it all, we dealt with our immediate
challenges with a sense of urgency, moving to
reduce our expense base, turn around credit
performance, and provide greater value to our
customers so they would continue to choose
American Express rst.
We also kept a long-term view, believing that
quick xes alone wouldn’t suce. We reengineered,
retooled and reinvested with the aim of improving
our competitive position. In essence, we readied
ourselves to act when conditions made sense for
us to shi from defense to oense. Let me show
how this approach played out in some of our
key metrics.
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Billed business, or the amount spent on American Express cards, declined in 2009 as consumers and businesses cut back on spending in
the dicult economy. Cards-in-force also declined, in part because the company cancelled 3.3 million inactive accounts during the year.
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AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY