American Express’s wealthy cardholders are mostly untouched by tariff jitters

American Express's affluent cardmembers are showing fewer signs of curbing their spending, and younger customers drove maturation successful first-quarter transaction volumes, Chief Financial Officer Christophe Le Caillec told CNBC.

Billed concern connected AmEx cards roseate 6% successful the period, oregon 7% erstwhile adjusted for the interaction of leap year, the institution reported Thursday, which shows that the bump successful spending late past year continued into 2025, according to Le Caillec.

Those trends person continued into April, the CFO said, contempt crisp declines successful stocks this period amid concerns that President Donald Trump's tariff policies volition origin a recession.

The dynamic, which helped AmEx apical expectations for first-quarter profit, shows that the company's wealthier lawsuit basal whitethorn assistance to insulate it from concerns astir tariffs and stubborn inflation. On the different extremity of the recognition spectrum, Synchrony Financial, which offers store cards for dozens of fashionable retailers, has warned of a spending slowdown.

"There's a batch of stableness and strength, contempt the quality and the environment," Le Caillec said.

Growth astatine AmEx came from younger cardholders, with millennial and Gen Z members spending 14% much successful the quarter. Gen X and Baby Boomer cardholders showed much caution, registering 5% and 1% increases, respectively.

Le Caillec said it's hard to discern whether cardmembers were pulling guardant purchases due to the fact that of the looming tariffs, creating an artificial boost to acquisition volumes, arsenic JPMorgan executives said past week. But immoderate tiny businesses whitethorn beryllium doing truthful to physique inventory due to the fact that of concerns astir the duties expanding costs, helium added.

One class successful peculiar gave Le Caillec assurance that the spending trends whitethorn beryllium durable.

"Restaurant walk is up 8%," the CFO said. "This is the eventual discretionary expense, it's not thing you tin bring forward, and truthful it's truly a bully indicator of the spot of our cardmember basal and the assurance they have."

If determination was a anemic country too the spending slowdown from older Americans, it was successful hose transactions, according to the company's net presentation. The class grew conscionable 3%, oregon 4% erstwhile adjusted for leap year, aft climbing 13% successful the 4th quarter.

But portion airlines, retailers and different corporations person pulled their net guidance connected tariff uncertainty, AmEx was holding firm.

It maintained its guidance for gross maturation of 8% to 10% and net of $15 to $15.50 per stock this year, Le Caillec said.

In the company's presentation, though, it added a caller caveat to its guidance: "Subject to the Macroeconomic Environment."