As part of an annual review process targeted at underachievers, Goldman Sachs (GS.N), opens new tab, intends to eliminate a few hundred jobs, a source familiar with the subject told Reuters on Friday.
The COVID-19 outbreak caused the investment bank to pause performance-related job layoffs for two years, but they resumed in 2022.
A Goldman representative told Reuters in a statement, “Our annual talent reviews are normal, standard, and customary, but otherwise unremarkable.” “We expect to have more people working at Goldman Sachs in 2024 than 2023.”
According to reports, between 1% and 5% of Goldman workers lost their jobs as a result of the exercise last year. The reductions made in accordance with Goldman’s strategic resource evaluation have varied over time depending on the state of the market and its financial outlook.
44,300 people worked for the bank worldwide as of the end of the quarter on June 30. In 2023, it saw many rounds of employment cutbacks as dealmaking deteriorated and the macroeconomic outlook was negatively impacted by higher-than-expected interest rates.
Since then, the banking industry has seen improvement. Goldman Sachs reported second-quarter earnings in July that more than quadrupled due to robust fixed-income trading and debt underwriting.
Corporate leaders now feel more confident to pursue acquisitions, debt sales, and stock offers because to the strength of the US economy. However, the amount of dealmaking activity has not increased to historical levels, even with a rebound in the business.
Goldman Sachs shares finished 0.6% higher after turning positive in afternoon trade. The stock has risen 32% so far this year, outperforming both the general market and an index that tracks competing large-cap banks (.SPXBK), opens new tab.
According to a Wall Street Journal story earlier in the day, the company plans to continue layoffs through the fall, affecting about 1300 workers, or 3% to 4% of its total staff.
