Bear Stearns to Cut Another 650 Jobs

Bear Stearns Cos. said Wednesday it would cut another 650 jobs, or nearly 4 percent of its global workforce, to cut costs at the No. 5 U.S. investment bank.

As we indicated at the end of October, we are continuing to rationalize our business, monitor staffing needs and align our infrastructure with current market conditions, Bear Stearns said in a statement.

The investment bank and securities trading and brokerage firm already eliminated more than 900 jobs in response to the subprime mortgage financial crisis.

Bear, the biggest underwriter of U.S. mortgage bonds, said this month it expected to write down $1.2 billion of assets linked to mortgages, leading to a fourth-quarter loss.

The latest cuts affect employees across the company, Bear said. The company had 15,516 employees at the end of August.

Bear said it would hire people in growth areas as it works to replace income lost in the U.S. mortgage market meltdown.

Bear shares rose $3.63, or 3.8 percent, to $99.06 in early afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange.