Finance sector jobs cut in Australia reach 10,000

A new report has found 10,000 finance sector jobs have been cut in Australia since the global credit crisis, The Australian Financial Review reports.

According to the newspaper, the report issued by Swiss-based international union UNI Finance Global has also found an additional 6300 positions were reportedly outsourced overseas.

The Finance Sector Union of Australia has commented on the report saying the numbers were not the most accurate as they did not include recent cuts from the big four banks and other institutions.

The FSU has said 4054 finance sector jobs have been made redundant or sent overseas during 2012 alone.

ICICI Bank to hike overseas ATM withdrawal fee by 17%

ATM cash withdrawals at international locations by ICICI Bank customers are set to get dearer by nearly 17 percent by the middle of this month.

“With effect from September 15, 2012 ATM cash withdrawal fee at international location will be increased from Rs 107 to Rs 125,” the country’s largest private sector bank said in a notification to its customers.

At present, other leading private banks, including HDFC Bank, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank, charge their customers a fee ranging from Rs 110 to Rs 125 per transaction for ATM cash withdrawals at international locations.

Among others, ING Vysya Bank charges its debit cardholders the rupee equivalent of $2.5 per withdrawal.

The charges for this service are higher for some public sector banks, as compared to their private sector peers. Bank of Baroda customers have to pay Rs 200 per withdrawal at VISA member banks abroad.

Globally, banks charge higher fees for international ATM withdrawals—either a flat rate (typically $1-6) or a set percentage of total withdrawal (usually 1-3 percent). The biggest advantage of withdrawing money abroad with an ATM card is that all cash withdrawals, regardless of amount, are executed based on the wholesale exchange rate, which are usually reserved only for very large inter-bank exchanges.