AUSTRALIAN businesses fear the next three months will be their toughest quarter yet - they fear the financial crisis will keep driving down sales, profits and employment levels.

A nationwide survey of 1200 companies revealed more than 50% were preparing for a drop in sales, while 59 per cent expected lesser profits. (more…)

Centrebet is offering good odds on the economy bottoming out.

The bookmaker has Australia a $1.12 favourite to fall into recession in the next 12 months, and $5.50 if it is avoided. (more…)

THE financial and retail sectors have a nail-biting Christmas period ahead, with further job cuts expected in late January. (more…)

The RBA governor has not ruled out cutting interest rates in January - a month when the RBA board does not normally meet. (more…)

The number of jobs advertised dropped the most on record in November, as companies shed staff or hold off fresh hiring to cope with slowing demand.

Jobs advertised online and in newspapers tumbled 8.6% in November from the previous month to an average of 211,199 per week, taking it 18.6% lower than a year earlier, according to ANZ Bank.

The steep drop is the seventh consecutive contraction of the gauge, and the deepest dive since ANZ began releasing the data on a monthly basis in 1999.

”Over the last two months, newspaper job advertising has declined by the most in the 30-year history of the survey,” said ANZ head of Australian economics Warren Hogan in a statement.

”This tells us that hiring intentions have been heavily impacted by the latest wave of uncertainty and financial distress caused by the global financial crisis.”

The economy all but stalled in the September quarter, data out last week showed, even before the worst of the global rout in stocks and other markets took hold.

Companies, including ANZ Bank itself, are starting to cut staff or refrain from filling vacant positions as they adjust to weaker demand at home and abroad.

New South Wales fared among the best with only an 8% decline in November, while Victoria’s ads shrank 12.6%.

GM Holden, Don’s smallgoods, HP EDS have all announced plans to reduce headcounts in recent months.

The national unemployment rate, currently at 4.3%, is projected to rise in coming months, with economists from JP Morgan expect it to rise to 9% by 2010.

The economy is expected to have lost 15,000 jobs last month, the survey found.

Employment advertisements at metropolitan newspapers shrank 12% in November, to 11,767 per week, on average, bringing them 42.7% below November 2007’s level.

Internet job ads also fell, losing 8.4% in November to an average of 199,433 in a week, which is 21.9% down from an April peak of 255,456.

”Annual growth in newspaper ads is now the weakest since 1991, the last time the economy experienced recession,” said Mr Hogan.

”Annual growth in job ads during the recessions of 1982 and 1991 fell to around -50%, so annual growth as at November 2008 remains above those past recession points.”

The resources states led the dive in job ads again, following steep losses in October.

Queensland fell 16.6% in November while Western Australia’s new job ads plummeted 14.9%.

At the extremes, the Australian Capital Territory saw the smallest decrease of 2.5%, and the Northern Territory, also sensitive to demand for minerals and resources, fell the most with a 17.4% decline.

Economists have said the finance sector may be one of the hardest hit sectors in coming months as lending volumes fall and the economy cools, reducing demand for banking services.

The latest drop in jobs numbers follow yesterday’s Olivier job index which tumbled nearly 10% in November, showing 48,000 fewer positions advertised per week on the three major job boards than a month earlier.

November’s fall marked the fifth consecutive monthly drop for the Olivier readings, putting it 16% lower than the same month last year.

article excerpts SMH