 "JP Morgan")
By Cathy Chan
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is making a fresh round of layoffs in Asia, cutting about 20 investment-banking jobs as deal flows remain muted, people familiar with the matter said.
The New York-based bank made the reductions Tuesday across the region, impacting mostly junior staff at associate and analyst levels in sectors including consumer, healthcare and private capital markets, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private.
The moves add to a February round of cuts that affected about 30 investment bankers in Asia, and followed similar moves by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc. last week. The four Wall Street banks, including Morgan Stanley, have eliminated at least 100 dealmaking jobs in Asia in the past month, with Hong Kong and China-based staff taking the biggest hits, people familiar said earlier.
A spokesperson for JPMorgan declined to comment.
Global banks are trying to adjust their businesses to keep costs low amid the downturn. Globally, Goldman is working on its third round of staff cuts in under a year, after eliminating hundreds of jobs in September, and another 3,200 at the start of this year.
Deal flow remained muted in the second quarter, with equity offerings in Asia-Pacific slumping by almost a third from the first three months, while announced mergers fell 21%, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
