ECB's Nowotny says Austrian banking jobs to fall by a third

VIENNA (Reuters) - The number of people working in the Austrian banking sector is likely to fall by a third in the next 4-5 years, Austrian National Bank (OeNB) Governor Ewald Nowotny said on Friday, citing research carried out by the central bank.

Nowotny, who is also a member of the European Central Bank's Governing Council, was speaking at a news conference for the release of the OeNB's semi-annual financial stability report on Austria's banking sector, which is widely seen as overcrowded.

"Structural change in the banking sector is necessary and under way," Nowotny said in a statement accompanying the report. "It will help make the banking sector more resilient and monetary policy more effective," he said, adding at the news conference that restructuring did not necessarily mean layoffs.

(Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Mark Potter)