Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. a profit
    • ex. The company made a big profit after selling more phones this year.
  2. wealthy
    • ex. Many wealthy people like to travel to expensive places.
  3. a sign-up
    • ex. The website gives a gift to all new account sign-ups.
  4. double
    • ex. Sales at the store doubled during the holiday season.
  5. a loan
    • ex. Maria went to the bank to apply for a loan to buy a new car.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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American Express (AmEx) reported a 16% rise in profits in the third quarter of 2025, earning $2.9 billion (about ¥442 billion). This growth happened because more people, especially wealthy customers, used their AmEx credit cards for shopping and travel. As a result, the company raised its full-year profit forecast. 

In September, AmEx updated its famous Platinum Card. The new version offers more rewards but now costs $895 (about ¥137,000) a year. Even with the higher fee, many customers liked the new design. Within three weeks, about 500,000 customers asked to switch to the new card, something the company thought would not happen until the end of the year.

According to CEO Steve Squeri, new Platinum account sign-ups in the U.S. doubled after the update. During the same quarter, the average spending on AmEx cards rose to $6,387 (about ¥975,000), a 5% increase from last year. More customers also carried a balance on their cards, with total loans rising to $138.95 billion (about ¥21 trillion). With these results, AmEx now expects its full-year profits per share to be higher than earlier estimates.

This material was based on an article by The Associated Press.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Credit Cards

  • Do you like using cash or a credit card when you shop? Why? Discuss.
  • Would you change to a new version of a credit card if the company offered more rewards, even if the cost was higher? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Do you think it is easy or difficult to control your spending when you use a credit card? Why? Discuss.

Spending Habits

  • More people used their cards more for shopping and travel. Which one of these do you spend the most money on? Why? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, what are some good ways to control your spending and not buy too much? Discuss.
  • How do you decide what to buy when you go shopping? Discuss.