Amazon credit card adds Whole Foods to 5 percent cash back offer

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc on Tuesday extended its 5 percent cash back benefit for Prime service subscribers to shoppers at its newly acquired Whole Foods Market grocery chain.

Roughly one year ago, the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Card issued by Chase began offering eligible Prime members a 5 percent cash back deal on all Amazon.com purchases.

Cardmembers who are not eligible Prime members will earn 3 percent back at Whole Foods and Amazon.com, Amazon said in a statement.

Amazon’s Prime service offers two-day shipping plus video streaming and other perks for $99 a year or $12.99 per month in the United States.

Since buying Whole Foods for $13.7 billion last year, Amazon has been working to streamline operations at Whole Foods - which has lagged rivals like Kroger Co in offering shopper loyalty programs, centralizing marketing and purchasing and using data to analyze what it should sell in stores.

Discount retailer Target Corp already offers a REDcard credit card that gives shoppers 5 percent off purchases at its own stores.