COMPANY-PAID perks from $25,000-a-month housing allowances to country club memberships may dry up for Singapore's expatriates as the financial crisis heralds new austerity measures by the nation's richest employers.

'Banks are hiring or replacing more cautiously,' PricewaterhouseCoopers International Ltd., the world's largest accountancy firm, said in a statement, reported Bloomberg news on Tuesday.

'Recruitment today is now focused on critical positions to meet business needs.'

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