Australia’s Housing Bubble Now Popping?

After more than a decade of non-stop growth, Australian banks are bracing themselves for a slowdown in credit growth. In an effort to cut costs and protect profit, most of the big banks have started to announce job cuts for 2012. The latest to do so was Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), the country's fourth-largest bank, which on Monday said that it will cut approximately 1,000 jobs in 2012.

ANZ which employs close to 24,000 people inAustraliainformed 492 employees on Monday that their roles would be affected. In a statement, the bank said that the job cuts will primarily be in middle-management, back-office and support functions....