At a time when banks, hedge funds and institutional investors are making deep cuts to job postings, Citigroup ($C) stands out as a surprising example of a bank undertaking less cuts. Well, for now, at least. Citigroup will announce earnings April 15, and analysts will be sure to make queries on spending - as well as reserves to offset bad loans - and we're still only in the earliest stages of assessing Coronavirus' impact on the US economy.
Citigroup job postings have fallen more than 16% from their 2020 peak, but it's far from the steepest drop in listings for major banks in 2020. It could be the least drastic reduction - time will tell.
At Bank of America ($BAC), job postings slid more than 31% in the crisis, nearly mirroring a 32% drop for shares. JPMorgan Chase ($JPM) listings fell a whopping 60%. Goldman has also slashed job postings, and will announce results April 16.
Moreover, Citigroup job postings in the US are down less than the global average - just off 9% from 2020 highs. Hopefully Citi is banking on a faster recuperation for the US economy - perhaps it's simply not filling roles, which has been a common theme with other banks, that have delayed on-boarding new staffers.
It comes at a time when Wall Street job postings are getting scarce, both at big banks and hedge funds. While there are conflicting narratives emerging on federal and state levels for when the nation will reopen, seeing financial services job postings cuts across the board, in the US and in Europe, bodes poorly for the global economy.
About the Data:
Thinknum tracks companies using the information they post online - jobs, social and web traffic, product sales and app ratings - and creates data sets that measure factors like hiring, revenue and foot traffic. Data sets may not be fully comprehensive (they only account for what is available on the web), but they can be used to gauge performance factors like staffing and sales.