* Colombia peso, Brazilian real weaken against dollar* Mexico peso erases gains, weakens; Moody’s warns FranceBy Jeb Blount and Michael O’BoyleRIO DE JANEIRO/MEXICO CITY, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Chile’s peso weakened against the U.S. dollar, posting the largest intraday loss among the world’s major currencies, on slower than expected growth in China.China’s economy grew 9.1 percent in the third quarter compared to a year earlier, its slowest pace in more than two years and less than expected. China is Chile’s largest trading partner.The China growth result, along with declines in steel and power output and demand for oil and other commodities comes as the world’s second-largest national economy tries to control inflation by restricting credit.Copper, Chile’s main export, fell for a second day.”The peso’s declines day are a reaction to the news of China slowing,” said Juan Pablo Castro, chief Chilean economist with Spain’s Banco Santander in Santiago. “The peso is very sensitive to external factors like the cost of copper.”The Chilean peso weakened 1.27 percent to 510.80 to the U.S. dollar, the largest intraday decline among the 25 most-traded world currencies.Of the more than 150 currencies tracked by Thomson Reuters, only the thinly traded Sao Tome dobra , Guinea franc and Mauritanian ouguiya weakened more than the Chilean peso on Monday.Chile’s peso could weaken as much as 5.4 percent more to 540 if copper, a key component in electrical systems, falls below $3.00 a pound in New York, Castro said.Copper at $3.50 a pound could help the peso gain to 500 to the dollar said Castro, who’s bank expects the peso to finish the year at 510 and copper at $3.30Copper for Dec. 1 settlement , the most widely held copper future on the New York Mercantile Exchange, fell 2.1 percent to $3.31 a pound in New York. In London copper for three month delivery fell 2.5 percent to $7,309 a tonne.Colombia, another country that depends heavily on exports of commodities, also saw its currency weaken. Its peso dropped 0.53 percent to 1,897.60.Colombia is a major exporter of oil, coal and coffee. The index of the 19 most traded agricultural, energy and metals raw materials fell for a second day, shedding 0.77 percent to 312.11.Brazil’s real erased early losses. In a day of seesaw trading it was 0.50 percent firmer at 1.7595 after weakening as much as 0.98 percent earlier.Iron-ore fell 2.02 percent to $150.30, the lowest for the main steel ingredient in 11 months.China is also Brazil’s largest trading partner and Brazil is the world’s largest producer of coffee, sugar, beef and orange juice and the second largest exporter iron-ore and soybeans.Mexico’s peso was firmer in seesaw trading, up 0.19 percent at 13.4486 to the dollar after economic data from the U.S. showed that chain store sales increased for a second month. Earlier it weakened as much as 0.6 percent to 13.5369.Mexico gets about 80 percent of its export earnings from the United States. Mexico is a major oil producer and exporter with an important mining industry.The Mexican peso’s declines may have been bolstered by concern about a potential Greek sovereign debt default that threatens to saddle European banks with large losses, slashing lending and growth world-wide.France, which may see itself hit with a large bill to recapitalize money-losing banks if Greece defaults, saw its 10-year bond fall. The yield on that bond, a proxy for 10-year borrowing costs, rose to their highest levels since August.Moody’s Investors Service warned it may soon place France on a watch-list for a potential downgrade of its top-tier “AAA” credit rating.”The French banks are the big concern for the market, and I think the Moody’s news makes the market a bit nervous,” said Jorge Perez-Duarte, managing director of emerging markets at TD Securities in Toronto.

* Q3 underlying sales growth seen up 5.6 pct - Rtrs pollBy Dominique VidalonPARIS, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Consumption trends for the rest of the year and in 2012 amid global recession fears will be in focus along with the outlook for commodity prices when French food group Danone reports third quarter sales on Tuesday.The world’s largest yoghurt maker is expected to post higher sales but slower growth in the third quarter as challenges in the Russian and U.S. dairy markets and a return to more normal growth rates at its water business take their toll, and investors will be keen to hear whether the weakness is temporary.”Investors are also likely to watch for any initial guidance on 2012 input cost inflation, which should be more benign than 2011” Societe Generale analysts said in a note.Analysts polled by Reuters on average expect Danone to post third-quarter sales of 4.8 billion euros, a reported rise of 10.6 percent. Closely-watched underlying sales growth is forecast at 5.6 percent.This would mark a slowdown from 8.7 percent in the first half. Danone Chief Executive Franck Riboud said last month he expected underlying growth of 5-6 percent in the quarter.Danone, whose brands include Actimel and Activia, at the time kept its targets for full-year underlying sales growth of 6-8 percent and for an improvement in operating margin of 20 basis points.Danone has forecast a rise of 6-9 percent in commodity costs this year and it raised its prices during the first half to combat this expected rise.Attention will also focus on the newly acquired Russian Unimilk business, which has suffered from higher milk costs and a repositioning of the business towards higher value-added milk products, which comes at the expense of sales volumes.Russia accounts for 11 percent of Danone’s sales, as does France, and they are the two top contributors to group sales.Meanwhile, the U.S. market, where Danone generates 8 percent of sales, has been seeing strong growth in the Greek yoghurt segment, which has cannibalised other areas where Danone has a stronger presence, analysts said. To address that situation, Danone relaunched a Greek yoghurt in July in the United States.Danone’s water business was boosted in the second quarter by strong demand from Japan after the Fukushima nuclear disaster and by warm weather in Europe. Third-quarter water sales are expected to reflect poorer weather in Western Europe.Danone’s acquisition strategy will also be in focus after it said it was on the lookout for expansion in fast-growing markets.

* NRC to take years to decide on new reactor licensesBy Scott DisavinoNEW YORK, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Two environmental groups said on Monday the giant Indian Point nuclear power plant in New York could be replaced with cleaner, safer energy sources.The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and Riverkeeper said the region had surplus energy to replace the 2,065-megawatt Indian Point. The groups said the energy could be tapped by running existing generators at modest additional cost, with no impact to reliability of the electric supply until 2020.The group responsible for New York’s power grid disagreed, saying a shutdown of Indian Point could result in blackouts.Indian Point is in Westchester County along the Hudson River, about 45 miles north of midtown Manhattan. The plant, which can power about 2 million homes, supplies about a quarter of the power used in New York City and Westchester.”We have a wealth of safer energy sources ready to go that can fully replace the power from Indian Point. When we consider the human and economic costs of a nuclear crisis in New York, and the host of benefits from investing in clean energy, the solution is common sense,” NRDC President Frances Beinecke said in a release.Entergy , the second biggest nuclear power operator in the United States and Indian Point’s owner, wants to keep running the plant for another 20 years and has filed with federal regulators to renew its two reactors’ operating licenses before they expire in 2013 and 2015.New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has said he wants Indian Point shut when its licenses expire, due in part to concerns for safety in having two nuclear reactors in the New York metropolitan area, home to about 19 million people.NRC SAYS INDIAN POINT SAFEU.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff has determined the two Indian Point reactors are safe to run for another 20 years.It will likely take years before the NRC commissioners decide whether to renew the reactors’ licenses. Before the commissioners decide, the agency’s judicial board must air the concerns of opponents. Any decisions can also be appealed to the agency or potentially to federal court.The new report, prepared for the NRDC and Riverkeeper by economic consulting firm Synapse Energy Economics, found that even if the Indian Point units both closed by 2015, there would be no need for new electric capacity until 2020.The report identified several replacement power options that could be implemented well before 2020, including about 1,500 MW in savings from new energy efficiency, nearly 600 MW of renewable energy, 8,000 MW from new proposed transmission lines and more than 1,000 MW from repowering old existing natural gas plants in New York City.The New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) has warned the shutdown of Indian Point would leave the city vulnerable to blackouts and other reliability problems.”It is clear that alternatives to Indian Point’s power would result in serious environmental and economic consequences for New York City and Westchester residents,” Jerry Nappi, a spokesman for Entergy, told Reuters.New York’s power company, Consolidated Edison , has said the shutdown of Indian Point would boost the already high cost of power in the Big Apple.Power prices in New York are already among the highest in the nation. The average retail price of power in New York is about 15.5 cents per kilowatt hour versus 9.8 cents for the national average, according to federal data.The environmental groups estimated the shutdown of Indian Point would only add about $1 to $5 per month to consumer’s monthly bills. Other studies however have found that power costs in New York City and Westchester would rise much more if Indian Point were shut.

By Allison Joyce Held twice yearly in February and September, New York Fashion Week features designers from all over the world, displaying their creations on the runways. A small venue of tents pops up in Lincoln Center to house the crowd of celebrities, designers and models who descend upon the city. The event also draws its own share of notable and outrageous personalities, fashionistas, and those who come just to be seen on the scene. I am now into my fourth year of covering the event and have started to recognize a group of colorful, sassy characters who come to Fashion Week each year. Some are former models, some are bloggers, and others seem to be famous just for their outlandish outfits or feline sidekicks. A few of them stand out because they are decked out in the same colorful suits, ostentatious hair styles and eye catching accessories year after year, appearing in the lobby or on the pavilion like clockwork. Most of them seem to be there for the same reasons, to network and be part of the scene. While most New Yorkers are sitting at their desks or following their daily routines on a Monday morning, ten blocks away, an entirely different scene is unfolding. Backstage, there is a flurry of hairspray, lipstick, clothes, shoes and champagne. On the runway, Anna Wintour is perched on her front row seat next to Nicki Minaj, watching the show to the boom of house music. Meanwhile, out front in the lobby, Janet Finkel is walking her cat, Natasha, while Cognac Wellerlane struts by, coiffed in her beehive. It’s all just another crazy day in the game called Fashion Week. (Click here or on any of the images above to view a slideshow)

Pittsburgh-based Consol expects fourth-quarter coal production at 14.7-15.3 million tons, up from 14.7 million tons in the current quarter.However, it expects fourth-quarter gas production at about 36-38 billion cubic feet (bcf), down from 40.4 bcf for the third quarter.

* Vodafone considering options* Providers will try to pass costs on to RIM-analysts* RIM, some users say service recoveringBy Tarmo Virki and Kate HoltonOct 13 (Reuters) - BlackBerry maker Research In Motion faced the prospect of a compensation bill from network providers on Thursday as the world’s dominant provider of mobile email struggled for a fourth day with service glitches.RIM said services were starting to improve in all affected regions, reducing disruption for the millions of users hit by delays and outages.But many in the telecoms industry believe significant damage has been done to a business that already has its share of trouble. They see a risk that this week’s disruption will tip already restless BlackBerry users into the arms of rivals like Apple.Meanwhile the company’s service provider partners were looking at how compensation might be handled.”We are reviewing our options in terms of compensation,” said a spokesman for Britain’s Vodafone , adding that “no decisions have been taken.”Spain’s Telefonica said on its web site it would compensate customers, in line with Spanish law. Spanish Consumer Association FACUA estimated that clients will receive 0.23-1.90 euros ($0.31-$2.62) for each 24 hours of service interruption.The Vodafone spokesman would not be drawn on whether such costs might be passed on to RIM, but analysts said there was little doubt operators would try.”In the past there have been outages but they’ve been limited to an hour here and an hour there and the operators have been tempted to let that go,” said Will Draper, analyst at Espirito Santo.”They haven’t been happy about it but it’s not the kind of thing you go to court over. But this is completely different. This is a three-day outage. This is 10 percent of your working month, so I’m pretty sure there will be compensation claims and I’m pretty sure they’ll try and pass it on to RIM, but my feeling is it will be very difficult to make it stick.”RIM is unique among handset makers in that it compresses and encrypts data before pushing it to BlackBerry devices via carrier networks. Apple and other rivals rely on the carrier networks to handle all routing and delivery of content. However other providers are breathing down RIM’s neck with smarter handsets and copycat service provision.Apple has started rolling out new version of its iOS software which includes BlackBerry-like iMessage service.One analyst said BlackBerry is a victim of its own success in that the huge increase in usage over recent years has made its centralised network architecture vulnerable.”This is the first major disruption to the BlackBerry service since 2009, during which time the number of BlackBerry users has doubled,” said Nick Dillon, analyst at technology specialist consultants Ovum in a note …”Despite the benefits the network brings in real-time delivery of email and data efficiency, it remains significant risk for the company.”SERVICES RECOVERRIM said there had been a significant improvement for services with users saying their services had started to work again, although there were still some delays.”Service levels are also progressing well in the U.S., Canada and Latin America and we are seeing increased traffic throughput on most services, although there are still some delays and services levels may still vary amongst customers,” RIM said in an update on its website.Singapore employees of global news and data provider Thomson Reuters were still having problems on Thursday but colleagues in London, Beijing, Tokyo, Jakarta and Bangkok said BlackBerry service was normal.The outages — and RIM’s sluggish communications with its customers — have fanned rising dissatisfaction with its co-chief executives, Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie.Critics have called for a shake-up, saying the top managers have let the company fall too far behind Apple and other rivals in a rapidly changing market.RIM’s shares have already tumbled more than 50 percent this year on a series of profit warnings and product missteps - a sharp reversal of fortune for a company that once dominated the smartphone market.Even before this week’s disruptions, many companies had started to balk at paying a premium to be locked into RIM’s service. Some are now allowing employees to use alternative smartphones, particularly Apple’s iPhone, for corporate mail, and the outage could accelerate the trend.

In an interview with Bloomberg Television, Geithner said the action by Republicans to block the bill in a procedural vote would likely result in weaker U.S. growth and employment.”We’re going to do everything we can to maximize the chance that we get as much of this done as possible,” Geithner said. “And we should, because this bill includes things that have always had broad support among Democrats and Republicans, There’s just no reason why politics should stand in the way of doing something to help the economy now.”Asked about another bill passed by Senate on Tuesday aimed at punishing China for an undervalued currency, Geithner said he agreed with the bill’s objectives, but some parts of it would violate U.S. international trade obligations.”We are very supportive of the objectives of that bill, which is to try to make sure that there is a level playing field around the world … that countries can’t keep their currencies weak at the expense of American exporters,” Geithner said. “We have been pushing very, very hard to get China to move … they’re moving too slowly we want to see them move faster.”The Senate approved the bill by a 63-35 vote, but House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, who has the power to block the legislation, has said it would be a “dangerous” step.Should the bill advance, Geithner said Congress would need to address several provisions that are not consistent with U.S. international obligations.”On the fundamental issue, we have a serious economic problem with China which we’re working to address and we’re open to any effective way, consistent with our international obligations, to help us create more opportunities for U.S. exporters,” he said.Geithner also repeated his view that European policymakers will take the necessary steps to limit the fallout from the continent’s sovereign debt crisis, but added they must act more quickly and with more force and ensure European banks can continue to borrow and function.

ASML was expected to report a 22 percent rise in third-quarter net profit to 330 million euros ($450 million), a Reuters poll found, while sales were seen up 19 percent to 1.397 billion.A bellwether for Europe’s technology sector, ASML is the world’s largest maker of semiconductor lithography machines which map out electronic circuits on silicon wafers, competing with Japanese groups Canon and Nikon.Its order book development is seen as a barometer for expectations of big chipmakers such as Intel, the world’s largest, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker.Victor Bareno, analyst at SNS Securities, said he expected a pick-up in ASML’s fourth-quarter orders from the third quarter, adding that since market conditions have not improved, orders will still be at depressed levels.What appeared to be a pause in orders for the chip equipment industry is turning into a full-blown downturn, said Bareno, adding he expected orders to bottom out by the end of 2011 and the chip market to recover during the first half of next year.ASML’s fourth-quarter order book was seen at 500-700 million euros — well below the record year-ago figure of 2.315 billion but above the indicated level for the third quarter, which the company said would not exceed 500 million euros.Global chipmakers and foundries have been battling falling demand as the industry was hit by economic uncertainties, supply chain disruptions due to the March earthquake in Japan, and customer inventory adjustments.Last month, research firm Gartner said semiconductor inventories were too high and it expected the sector to go through a moderate inventory correction during the coming few quarters with production and sell-through expected to return roughly to balance by the second quarter of 2012.Some chipmakers have reportedly said they will cut capital spending in 2012 amid low visibility in the sector and lower growth expectations in some chip markets next year.ASML chief executive Eric Meurice said on July 13 customers were taking “some time” to assess semiconductor end-demand trends for 2012 before making decisions about how and when they would determine capacity plans.Despite the expected drop in third-quarter orders, Meurice said at the time ASML’s 2011 sales would still be the best yet for the company, topping 5 billion euros. He was expected to reiterate this full-year sales target on Wednesday.Surging demand for smartphones and tablet computers are the bright spots for the chip sector at the moment as demand for desktop and laptop computers wanes.So, while Apple has prospered from demand for its iPads and iPhones, and the Galaxy smartphone series has become Samsung’s main profit engine, other firms with different chip requirements have not done so well.AU Optronics, LG Display, Micron Technology and Intel are among those that have recently trimmed outlooks for some products due to weaker demand.ASML has a global market share of around 70 percent and counts Intel, Samsung Electronics, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing among its customers.($1 = 0.733 euro)

The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the labels have been negotiating since August and despite about 16 meetings, have been unable to come to an agreement.No more negotiating sessions are scheduled.Major issues standing between the two sides include health care and pension security and transparency of accounting.The current contract, which covers about 14,500 people, expires December 31.AFTRA and representatives from Sony, UMG, Warner, EMI, Disney and most of their subsidiary labels began formal negotiations August 15 in New York. Talks went for two weeks. After that, the sides met for another week in Los Angeles.Because they couldn’t reach an agreement, they met for a final day in New York on October 5 — but still couldn’t agree.On October 2, AFTRA’s national board of directors gave the union’s negotiating committee permission to seek a strike authorization vote.”While AFTRA is not currently on strike in Sound Recordings, the AFTRA National Board has unanimously authorized the Negotiating Committee to take all actions necessary, up to and including … a strike authorization vote,” according to a statement AFTRA released Friday.According to the union, “the AFTRA Negotiating Committee stands ready, willing and able to meet and receive a fair proposal from the major labels in order to resolve a fair contract for the session singers and royalty artists whose talents provide the music that keeps these multibillion dollar corporations in business.”The contract was originally set to expire in 2010, but was extended for one year.The Sound Recordings Code “covers singers, royalty and non-royalty artists, as well as announcers, actors, comedians, narrators and sound effects artists who work on recordings in all new and traditional media and all music formats, in addition to audio books, comedy albums and cast albums.”According to the union, the code generates more than $140 million annually in AFTRA-covered earnings and benefits for both major artists and session singers around the country.

By Peter Thal Larsen The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own. Europe’s banks may need to re-sit their summer exam. Regulators are looking for ways to inject more capital into the region’s troubled lenders. One potential quick fix is to use the same data as in July’s discredited stress tests, but impose haircuts on sovereign debt. But this wouldn’t be enough. The authorities should also raise the minimum capital ratio that banks need to clear. The flaw in July’s tests was that banks did not have to mark down the government bonds they currently hold at face value. As a result, only eight of the EU’s 90 largest lenders flunked the exam, with a capital shortfall of just 2.5 billion euros. Since then, worries about sovereign debt have spread from Greece and Portugal to Spain and Italy, threatening a systemic crisis. Ideally, regulators would conduct another test. But that would take months, and Europe does not have the luxury of time. An alternative is to re-run the tests with the same data, while forcing the banks to mark all sovereign bonds to current market prices. In that scenario, 18 banks would fail, with a capital hole of 40 billion euros, according to Breakingviews’ stress test calculator. But that would not be enough to restore confidence. The International Monetary Fund puts the capital shortfall of European banks at between 100 billion and 200 billion euros. Some analysts have come up with even higher numbers.