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CNBC is reporting that Steve Jobs is taking a leave of absence from Apple until June, citing health reasons.

Rumors of Jobs’ ailing health have been in an upheaval since the announcement that he would not deliver the annual Keynote address at MacWorld conference and expo this past January 5th, as he had done since returning to the company in 1997.

In 2004, Steve was treated for a rare case of pancreatic cancer.

Story is still developing.

Apple has quietly announced on Tuesday that this year will be their last as exhibitors at MacWorld (Jan 5-9), the annual conference and expo held in January at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The conference is organized by IDG World Expo.

This year will also mark the last Keynote presentation, an event marking the beginning of the conference, where Apple CEO Steve Jobs traditionally announces updated and new products to much fan-fare.

This year, Phil Schiller, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing will have the stage.

Full press release from Apple, Corp. below:

CUPERTINO, California—December 16, 2008-Apple today announced that this year is the last year the company will exhibit at Macworld Expo. Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, will deliver the opening keynote for this year’s Macworld Conference & Expo, and it will be Apple’s last keynote at the show. The keynote address will be held at Moscone West on Tuesday, January 6, 2009 at 9:00 a.m. Macworld will be held at San Francisco’s Moscone Center January 5-9, 2009.

Apple is reaching more people in more ways than ever before, so like many companies, trade shows have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers. The increasing popularity of Apple’s Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways.

Apple has been steadily scaling back on trade shows in recent years, including NAB, Macworld New York, Macworld Tokyo and Apple Expo in Paris.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

Despite forecasting a quarterly profit below analysts’ expectations, due largely to disappointing holiday-season iPod shipments, and thereby sending its shares down by 11% earlier this week, Apple was still doing well enough to offer several senior executives 2007 cash bonuses that doubled their salaries ($600,000 range).

The poor man of the group? CEO Steve Jobs, who maintained his annual pay of $1 and took no additional compensation. “In fiscal year 2007, Mr. Jobs’ entire compensation consisted of his $1 annual salary,” Apple said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

It almost sounds like a gimmick. At the very least, it’s really good PR. But don’t feel too bad for Jobs; he’s still the highest paid CEO in America according to Forbes. Though his annual base salary has been $1 since 1997, he currently holds about 5.5 million shares of Apple common stock, trading around $130 per share after this week’s disappointing posting. You do the math.