Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) has begun a new round of staff cuts in its trading and investment banking divisions, three sources familiar with the matter said, a sign of a continued penny-pinching on Wall Street.
The job cuts follow 2,400 positions Goldman eliminated last year, and further reductions are possible as the company continues to reduce costs to raise profitability, the sources said.
The latest round of cuts is part of Goldman's annual culling process in which the company fires employees who miss performance targets or can be replaced with technology or less expensive staff.
It's unclear how many people will be affected by the job eliminations, which began two weeks ago, because different divisions have received different targets, the sources said. While management has formulated an overall plan for cost-cutting, all of the job cuts may not be completed for months, said a source familiar with the matter.
Recent staff reductions have been less drastic than the culling Goldman performed in March 2011, when 5 percent of its trading staff was let go, said the sources, who have either worked at the company or recruited for it, and spoke under condition of anonymity.
Goldman spokesman Michael DuVally declined to comment on the job cuts.
