Fed: Economic indicators out as Reserve prepares to meet

AAP General News (Australia)
12-03-2001
Fed: Economic indicators out as Reserve prepares to meet

CANBERRA, Dec 3 AAP - A string of important economic indicators today will put more
pressure on the Reserve Bank as it prepares to review the nation's interest rates.

Retail trade, job advertisement and inventory figures are all out today, on top of
a series of surveys showing further problems in the job market.

The Reserve meets tomorrow when it has its last chance before February next year to
make a move on rates which were left unchanged during the election.

Its decision on rates, expected to be at least a 0.25 per cent cut, will come out on
Wednesday, just ahead of the latest national accounts.

Treasurer Peter Costello indicated he was preparing to use all available economic levers
to help Australia avoid the recession rapidly hitting major trading partners.

He said with the United States and Japan in recession, South East Asia going backwards
and Europe stalling, Australia was performing well but more would have to be done.

"Now we are beating the world but we will not be immune from it and we have just got
to make sure that we come through this period in the best condition possible," he said.

The Olivier Internet Job Index found there were 9,500 fewer jobs advertised in November
than in October.

The 14 per cent decline was the biggest monthly drop for the index, which began collecting
information in December 1999, and follows a nine per cent slump over October.

The Job Futures/Saulwick survey of 1,000 workers found the proportion who said they
were not confident of finding a job within six months had risen from 23 per cent to 31
per cent.

AAP sw/ldj/de

KEYWORD: ECONOMY DAYLEAD

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