Barclays to Cut At Least 1,400 Jobs As Profits Plunge By One-Third

Barclays plc (NYSE: BCS) said it plans to cut hundreds of more jobs in the wake of a 33 percent plunge in profits for the first half of the year.

The British-based bank may slash at least 1,400 more jobs in 2011, after already having eliminated another 1,400 positions this year.

"You should assume this trend [of job-cutting] will continue and increase somewhat," said Barclay’s chief executive Bob Diamond

He described the challenges of operating in a “lackluster economic environment.”

The bank has about 147,000 employees across the globe, including 55,000 in the United Kingdom.

The Daily Telegraph reported that most of the job cuts will likely occur outside of Britain, particularly in Spain, where the bank seeks to reduce workforce by 16 percent.

Barclays is following UBS, Credit Suisse and HSBC among global banks which are reducing workforce amidst falling results.

The drop in Barclay’s first-half profits was exacerbated by a £1-billion provision for settling claims related to the mis-selling of payment protection insurance.

The bulk of the corporation’s profits were generated by its investment banking division, Barclays Capital, which includes remnants of the former U.S. bank, Lehman Brothers.