Currently, American Express captured more than 70% of the travelers cheque market in China and it has been in partnership with 33 Chinese banks. The US company intends to enhance the figure up to more than 90% in the future, the vice president said. In 2006, American Express travelers cheque gained global sales of more than USD 19.7 billion.

Besides travelers cheque, American Express card also takes a large market share. The card is widely used in more than 400 cities in China, covering hotels, restaurants, shops, and airlines. The consumption power of American Express cardholders is three times or four times that of American Express' rivals.

In January 2002, CITS American Express Travel Services Ltd., a joint venture between American Express and China International Travel Service (CITS), the largest travel services chain in China, was established in Beijing. It is the first Sino-US business travel service joint venture in China.

The second and third such ventures between the two parties, namely, CITS American Express Air Services Ltd. and CITS American Express Southern Air Services Ltd., were launched in December 2002 in Shanghai and February 2003 in Guangzhou, respectively.

These ventures are 49% owned by American Express and 51% by CITS. In the past years, American Express built a solid customer base in China's business travel market via the management over the ventures.

In 2003, the two sides inked a travel representative agreement to widen the travel network by appointing some travel agencies in China to provide travel services for American Express card members. By 2005, the representative offices had been expanded to 100 regions across the country covering all major provinces and cities.

In 2004, American Express entered into a card cooperation agreement with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd. (ICBC, SHSE: 601398, and SEHK: 1398), in a bid to debut the American Express branded credit card in China. The new card can be used at ICBC network and China UnionPay network throughout the country, as well as at American Express outlets in more than 200 countries and territories around the world.

(USD 1 = CNY 6.98)

From www.cnstock.com, Page 1, Thursday, April 24, 2008
 info@SinoCast.com

On Thursday, stocks ended higher after the government's jobless claims data and Ford Motor Co.'s first-quarter results helped reinject some optimism about the economy into the market.

The University of Michigan's final April reading on consumer sentiment will garner some attention later in the session, with Thomson Reuters' IFR Markets saying the focus will be on consumers' inflation expectations.

It said the March one-year median inflation rate of 4.8 percent was the highest reading since July 1982, and will likely rise further, given soaring oil and gasoline prices.

In corporate earnings, Microsoft shares fell 5 percent in after-hours trading Thursday as its fourth-quarter guidance and weaker-than-expected third-quarter sales at its Windows unit overshadowed a rosy outlook from the software maker for 2009. American Express rose 3.6 percent in after-hours trading Thursday after the company's earnings from continuing operations topped analyst expectations.

mark.cotton@thomsonreuters.com mc1/cmr

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Currently, American Express captured more than 70% of the travelers cheque market in China and it has been in partnership with 33 banks in China, to market its travelers cheque here. The company intends to lift the share up to more than 90% in the future, the vice president said.

Apart from travelers cheque, American Express card also has large market share. The card is widely used in more than 400 cities in China, covering hotels, restaurants, shops, and airlines. The card members' consumption capacity is three times or four times that of its rivals.

From www.cnstock.com, Page 1, Thursday, April 24, 2008
 info@SinoCast.Com

The credit card company said late-Thursday first-quarter earnings from continuing operations were 84 cents a share, topping the mean estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters of 81 cents a share. Total provisions for losses and benefits increased 48% over year-earlier levels to $1.27 billion, while provisions for loss in its U.S. card services business grew 52% to $881 million.

Merrill Lynch reiterated its sell rating on the stock, with Analyst Kenneth Bruce saying, given that the company is still under-reserved despite the reserve build during the quarter, the better-than-expected earnings were of "low quality." He cut his 2008, 2009 and 2010 earnings estimates, and expects credit losses to rise through 2009.

"We remain confident that American Express is in the early stages of a cyclical downturn, likely providing a better entry point, as further credit capitulation needs to occur prior to finding a cyclical trough," Bruce said in a research note.

Credit Suisse Analyst Moshe Orenbuch kept the rating at underperform, saying that while earnings beat expectations, they beat because of a lower tax rate as well as a payment related to the settlement of its litigation with Visa.

Orenbuch cut 2008 and 2009 earnings estimates, and kept the stock price target at $45.

Citigroup Analyst Bradley Ball maintained his hold rating and $47 price target. "While we continue to expect American Express to weather the current consumer credit headwinds better than most, we think the stock is likely range-bound for now given greater risk of a near-term EPS shortfall," Ball said. Tomi Kilgore tk1

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