Investing.com -- Diageo's new chief executive Dave Lewis has directed executives to reduce headcount and cut costs as part of a restructuring of the spirits company, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

Lewis, known for aggressive cost reductions at Tesco and Unilever, has assigned cost-reduction targets to members of Diageo's executive committee without specifying the number of positions to be eliminated, according to people familiar with the matter cited by the newspaper.

The company plans to announce the extent of job losses internally next week, the report said.

Last month, Lewis said the company had started addressing weak sales in North America, its largest market, which he described as its "biggest challenge." The company has implemented measures including price reductions on some tequila brands such as Casamigos.

Lewis also said Diageo had completed work to address competitiveness globally.