While Wall St. was fixated on Apple’s (AAPL) numbers and the health outlook for Steve Jobs, American Express (AXP) slipped through the side door with some frightening numbers.

Apple’s earnings said something about the current economy. AXP’s said almost everything.

Apple did just fine in the last quarter. The consumer electronics phenom posted revenue of $7.46 billion and profits of $1.19 a share. Both beat Wall St. numbers. Mac sales were up an extraordinary 41%.

Looking forward to the September quarter, Apple said gross margins would fall to 31.5% compared to 34.8% in the most recent period. For the upcoming quarter, Apple said its expects revenue of $7.8 billion and profits of $1 a share, which is well below the analyst consensus of $8.32 billion and $1.24.

In other words, Apple expects its results to be lousy. The economy is slowing. It is any wonder?

The much more nerve-racking news came from American Express. Quarterly profit fell 38% for the last quarter. According to Reuters, "American Express set aside $1.889 billion during the quarter to cover losses, nearly double the $977 million it set aside the same quarter last year."

The credit card company also said its high end customers were spending less and taking longer to pay bills.

There have been many signs that consumer spending is falling fast and consumer credit defaults are rising. What has not been clear is that people who normally have money to spend are feeling very poor and are becoming deadbeats at a fairly alarming rate.

When the rich no longer feel rich, the economy has lost its last leg.

Douglas A. McIntyre

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