Episode summary
UPS Cutting Costs and Amazon Cutting Jobs | Bloomberg Intelligence
Bloomberg Intelligence
· · Hosts: Paul Sweeney, Lisa Mateo · Guests: Poonam Goyal, Lee Klaskow, Sean McCarthy
Summary
Amazon is cutting 14,000 corporate jobs, and Bloomberg Intelligence’s Poonam Goyal said the move is still small relative to its global workforce but likely only the start of more reductions. She argued that automation and AI are driving the push for efficiency, helping Amazon offset rising AI capex while protecting margins. She also said the company is focused on long-term growth rather than short-term quarterly trends, and expects Amazon to keep taking share in holiday shopping with solid retail sales growth.
UPS also used cost cuts to beat Wall Street expectations, with shares rallying after the company reported progress on a multibillion-dollar savings plan. Bloomberg Intelligence’s Lee Klaskow said UPS is reshaping its network around e-commerce, automation, and a deliberate pullback from lower-margin Amazon business. He said the company has already closed dozens of facilities, increased automation across more sites, and expects $3.5 billion of cost savings this year, with about $2.2 billion achieved so far.
Tariffs and changes to de minimis rules are creating both headwinds and opportunities for parcel and customs businesses, with China-to-U.S. volumes down sharply. The conversation then shifted to municipal bonds, where Sean McCarthy said 2025 is likely to set another record after a record 2024, supported by heavy infrastructure issuance and rising power demand tied to AI data centers.
Key takeaways
- Poonam Goyal said Amazon’s 14,000-job cut is only about 4% of corporate headcount, and more reductions likely follow as automation and AI spread.
- Goyal expects Amazon to post solid holiday results and keep taking share, with high-single-digit retail sales growth expected.
- Lee Klaskow said UPS is targeting $3.5 billion of cost savings in 2025 and has already captured about $2.2 billion.
- Klaskow said UPS is closing facilities and automating more of its network as it reduces exposure to lower-margin Amazon business.
- Sean McCarthy said municipal bond issuance is on pace for another record year in 2025, helped by infrastructure needs and AI-related power demand.
Notable quotes
“14,000 is about 4% of its corporate workforce and even smaller when you look at it on a base of 1.55 million employees worldwide”
“we think this is just the beginning. We're just scratching the surface. There will be more cuts with Amazon”
“they're looking to get 3.5 billion uh dollars in cost savings this year. They've done around 2.2 billion of that so far”
“66% of their packages uh touch uh these automated facilities which is around 300 basis points more than was last year”
“this year is going to be in all probability another record”
How the episode opens
Bloomberg Audio Studios podcasts radio news. You're listening to the Bloomberg Intelligence Podcast. Catch us live weekdays at 10 a.m.
Eastern on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business App. Listen on demand wherever you get your podcasts or watch us live on YouTube. One of the stock stories in the news, folks, is it is Amazon um cutting 14,000 jobs.
I was doing some reading on Bloomberg News and they had like almost doubled their headcount pre- pandemic coming out of the pandemic and so it makes sense that they can should be shedding some jobs perhaps. Let's check in with Pum Goyle, senior US uh e-commerce and retail analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. Put talk to us about Amazon here.
14,000 jobs it seems like a big number but I do know and for those affected it is a big number but they have you know over a million employees. So what's happening at Amazon? Yeah, it sounds like a big number, but in the grand scheme of things and for Amazon, it's not needlemoving, right?
It's 14,000 is about 4% of its corporate workforce and even smaller when you look at it on a base of 1.55 million employees worldwide. So, still very small, but but they're cutting, right? And that's the thing.
They've been cutting since after the pandemic, as you mentioned, and we think this is just the beginning. We're just scratching the surface. There will be more cuts with Amazon, especially as automation and AI continue to fuel efficiencies across the organization.
We haven't even got to warehouses yet, right? Where there's a lot of automation going on. So, is AI the main reason behind the layoffs?
I mean, as the company's trying to offset that rising AI capex, I mean, it helps, right?
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- amazon layoffs
- ups cost cutting
- ai workforce
- transport logistics earnings
- muni bond sales
Companies and tickers mentioned
- AMZN
- UPS
- Amazon.com
- United Parcel Service
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Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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