SYDNEY, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- ANZ Bank, one of the big four banks in Australia, has launched its first round of job cuts amid the fears that some 7,000 jobs could be slashed from the Australian banking industry in the next two year, local media reported on Wednesday.
About 130 workers in the bank's commercial and retail businesses were told on Tuesday that they would be made redundant.
A spokesman for ANZ Bank said affected staff would be able to apply for other roles at ANZ, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) News reports.
"These changes reflect continued belt-tightening in the business given the more subdued economic environment and the continued pressure funding costs are placing on margins," the spokesman said.
"As we flagged last week, we expect that there may be further changes during 2012 but there are no other specific plans to announce at this stage."
It was reported that close to 1,000 jobs could possibly disappear in the bank over the next six months, but the job cuts would not affect frontline staff including tellers and branch workers.
A report from analysts at Swiss investment bank UBS says up to 7,000 jobs could be cut in the Australian banking industry in the next two years as banks attempt to cut cost.
