LONDON (Reuters) – Cadbury Plc (CBRY.L) would prefer a merger with U.S. chocolate maker Hershey Co (HSY.N) rather than Kraft Foods Inc (KFT.N), the British company&&9;s chairman Roger Carr told the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

However, he said both U.S. groups would fail if they cannot finance generous bids, the paper reported.

Hershey is considering launching a bid of at least &&6;17 billion for Cadbury as it seeks to trump a hostile &&6;16.5 billion offer by Kraft, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday.

"Clearly, whilst some potential offerors are more aligned with our business model than others, it is the value of the offer rather than the source of the offer that is our priority," Carr told the Sunday Telegraph.

Cadbury shares closed at 800 low fee payday loans.5 pence on Friday, valuing the company at about 11 billion pounds (&&6;16.5 billion). In recent notes, analysts have said Cadbury is worth about 850-900 pence a share.

"We&&9;re focused on delivering value to shareholders as a standalone pure-play confectioner," a Cadbury spokesman said on Sunday.

"We have always said that we would give proper consideration to any serious offer that delivers full value for the company. Unless and until we find ourselves in that situation we have nothing to comment upon." (Reporting by Julie Crust; editing by Jon Loades-Carter)

(&&6;1=.6645 Pound)

Cadbury prefers merger with Hershey over Kraft: report

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Dell Inc&&9;s (DELL.O) quarterly profit plunged 54 percent and its revenue missed Wall Street expectations as sales to large business continued to struggle, driving its shares down 6 percent.

The weak results from the world&&9;s third-largest maker of personal computers surprised analysts since they came after larger rival Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ.N) had reported stronger-than-expected preliminary earnings.

"It was universally expected they would beat because pretty much everyone else in the PC space has posted strong numbers," Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu said of Dell. "So, the conclusion is that they lost share -- lost a lot of share."

Dell reported a net profit of &&6;337 million, or 17 cents a share, for its fiscal third quarter ended October 30, down from &&6;727 million, or 37 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

Excluding restructuring and amortization charges, profit per share was 23 cents. Analysts were expecting earnings per share of 28 cents, excluding items, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S, but it was not immediately clear if that was directly comparable quick payday loans.

Dell said revenue fell 15 percent to &&6;12.9 billion, missing the average analyst estimate of &&6;13.2 billion.

The company did not provide a formal outlook for the critical holiday-season quarter, though it said it expects revenue to improve from the third quarter, with its consumer business showing seasonal improvement.

"We are seeing improvement in overall underlying IT demand that is continuing into the fourth quarter," Chief Executive Michael Dell said in a statement.

Shares of Round Rock, Texas-based Dell fell to &&6;14.95 in extended trading, after closing at &&6;15.87 on Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Gabriel Madway and Ian Sherr; Writing by Tiffany Wu; Editing by Richard Chang)

Dell results below Street view, shares fall

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Treasury prices gained and yields fell Thursday, as bond traders' confidence that concerns about prospects for sluggish economic growth will keep U.S. debt "bulletproof" overshadowed the government's plan to sell a record amount next week.

Treasurys thus resumed a rally that's run for nearly two weeks, pushing 2-year note yields down to the lowest level seen in 10 months. Bond prices move inversely to their yields.

Yields on benchmark 10-year notes fell 5 basis points to 3.32%, which would be the lowest on a closing basis since Oct. 20.

Two-year note yields declined 7 basis points to stand at 0.68%, the lowest since mid-January.

Investors' "interest in the safest debt in the world remains in high favor," said Kevin Giddis, managing director of fixed income for Morgan Keegan & Co.

Looking to next week's debt auctions, the Treasury Department said it will sell $22 billion in 2-year notes on Monday, matching the record amount of the securities sold last month.

That sale will be followed by $42 billion in 5-year notes on Tuesday and $32 billion in 7-year notes the day after that -- all crammed in before the Thanksgiving holiday. The latter two sales set new records for the most ever sold and are $1 billion more than October's sales.

Earlier this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke supported bond bulls by reiterating that interest rates would remain low for some time. Read more on Bernanke's speech to the Economic Club of New York.

Recent economic data have also tended to be weaker than anticipated, calling into question how quick or robust of a recovery the U.S. can expect.

Also, as the end of the year approaches, investors and traders tend to unwind short positions and book profits on good bets made during the year, analysts said. That activity tends to support Treasurys, which are bought to show less risky balance sheets.

"The market has embraced a view that the Fed will not tweak its rate policy before it makes amends with the quantitative-easing side of monetary policy," said George Goncalves, chief fixed-income rates strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald faxless payday loans. "We do not view supply derailing the recent bulletproof market behavior in the front-end as the year-end scramble for good collateral will keep rates markets bid."

Assets that tend to benefit when investors want riskier, higher-yielding assets -- equities, oil and gold -- all fell on Thursday. The U.S. dollar, which tends to improve as risk appetite fades, gained during the session. See more on the dollar.

DOW INDUSTRIALS (DJIA)

Treasurys remained up after the Labor Department said initial claims for unemployment benefits were flat in the latest week at 505,000 -- the 53rd week in a row in which they've been above the half-million mark. See more on jobless claims.

"To be certain, 500,000 people filing an initial claim in any given week is a terribly high number," Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak, wrote in an email. It's also still above a level associated with a positive print in the monthly payrolls report, he said.

Treasurys also held their gains after the Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators rose 0.3% in October, less than the 0.4% increase predicted by economists. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's manufacturing index rose more than anticipated to 16.7 this month from 11.5 in October. See more on leading indicators.

Rounding out Thursday's data, a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association showed delinquencies on home loans rose to a new record.

Bond Report: Treasurys advance as risk appetite wanes

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Legislation mandating broad regulatory reform in the banking industry continued to take shape Tuesday, with lawmakers approving limits on the amount of taxpayer funds that could be used to dismantle insolvent, "too-big-to-fail" financial institutions.

The House Financial Services Committee made other changes to the bank reform bill, including alterations to the structure of the Federal Reserve.

The legislation seeks to amass funds from large financial institutions and hedge funds that would be used to make payments to creditors and counterparties of a large failing financial institution so that its collapse does not lead to their collapse, further unsettling the financial markets.

Almost all of Wall Street has received government money - so why not a bailout for newspapers? Members of the Journal Editorial report team discuss. Watch the Journal Editorial Report on the FOX News Channel on Saturdays at 2 and 11 pm EDT.

Lawmakers approved a measure that would require funds from large financial institutions be used to pay to cover the costs of dismantling a financial institution.

"Wall Street companies and executives should have to pay for their own mistakes," said Rep. Paul Hodes, D-N.H., the provision's author. "This amendment ensures that financial companies, not taxpayers, will resolve the company."

According to committee spokesman Steven Adamske, the provision would not prohibit Congress from allowing bank regulators to use taxpayer funds to dismantle an institution as long as those costs would be recouped later from the financial industry and the industry-funded pool of capital had been tapped first. He added that the committee will consider the details of the funding later this week.

The White House and many lawmakers on Capital Hill, including Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., the author of too-big-to-fail legislation in the Senate, are seeking to allow Congress to permit bank regulators to use taxpayer funds first to dismantle a failed institution and later recoup those costs from the industry.

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., the committee's chairman, said he expects to support an amendment that is expected to be introduced later this week that would cap the amount that can be collected from financial institutions to $200 billion easy payday loans.

"The cap we have is $200 billion," Frank said.

The Frank legislation would have financial institutions with $10 billion in capital or more pay fees to fund the pool of capital that could be used to unravel a failed supersized bank. Frank added that each institution will be assessed based on their size, interconnectedness and general riskiness. Roughly 120 financial institutions would be assessed fees had the provision been in effect today.

However, Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., is expected to introduce a provision that would only have really large institutions with $75 billion, adjusted for inflation, pay into the fund. It's unclear whether lawmakers will support Sherman's measure or stick to the original legislation.

The committee also approved an amendment introduced by Rep. Gary Peters, D-Mich., that would reduce the power of the presidents at the Federal Reserve's 12 regional banks, placing more authority in the hands of presidentially appointed and Senate-confirmed Federal Reserve Board of Governors. A similar provision was introduced by Dodd in the Senate.

According to the amendment, the Fed's board of governors would be prohibited from delegating the authority to make any voting decisions to the presidents of the Federal Reserve banks. At issue is Peters' concern about a lack of independence among regional Fed banks because their boards are made up, in part, of members of the banking community. The regional Fed bank boards, which also include members of the general public, pick their presidents. Peters said he didn't want the 12 regional bank presidents to have too much power over key decisions made by the central bank.

"We expect that voting authority to go to presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed board of governors of the Federal Reserve System," Peters said.

Lawmakers also approved a provision that would remove a dismantled, insolvent supersized financial institution's board, in addition to its top management.

The legislation had previously only sought to have a failed institution's management removed.

Panel: Big bank-failure costs to be paid by banks

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Berkshire Hathaway, the insurance-focused conglomerate owned by Warren Buffett, increased its stakes in Wal-Mart Stores and Wells Fargo during the third quarter, according to a regulatory filing Monday.

Berkshire took new stakes in Exxon Mobil , Nestle SA , Republic Services and Travelers Cos. during the period, the filing showed.

Berkshire sold shares of Eaton Corp. , Wabco Holdings , NRG Energy , Moody's Corp. and ConocoPhillips in the quarter, the filing also showed.

Buffett has generated strong returns over several decades, so changes in Berkshire's investment portfolios are closely watched. Monday's filing shows Berkshire holdings as of Sept. 30. It's likely that some of the company's investments have changed since then.

Berkshire's stake in Wal-Mart stood at 37,836,642 shares worth roughly $1.9 billion at the end of September, according to the filing payday loans online. That compares to 19,944,300 shares worth less than $1 billion at the end of June.

Berkshire increased its stake in Wells Fargo by more than 10 million shares during the third quarter, according to the filings.

Berkshire held 1,276,290 shares of Exxon Mobil at the end of September. Three months earlier the company held no shares of the oil company, according to the filings.

Berkshire held 3.4 million American depository receipts of Swiss food giant Nestle worth more than $144 million at the end of September.

The company's new stake in Republic Services was worth almost $100 million on Sept. 30, while its Travelers stake was worth roughly $1.3 million.

Berkshire raised Wal-Mart, Wells Fargo stakes

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Gold raced to a record high above &&6;1,140 an ounce on Monday, gaining 2 percent as a weakened dollar boosted funds&&9; risk appetite for investments across the board.

Gains in gold spurred interest in other precious metals, with platinum, palladium, silver and rhodium all hitting their strongest levels in more than a year, largely driven by a tumbling dollar.

"A weak dollar has increased the demand of risky assets of all kinds, including hard assets. It is clearly reinforcing the commodities bull market," said James Steel, chief commodities analyst at HSBC.

"In this atmosphere, it is almost impossible for gold to resist appreciating along with everything else," Steel said.

Year to date, gold has risen 30 percent, outperforming the broad-based equities S&P 500 index, which has gained 23 percent over the same period.

Gold&&9;s ascent was driven by a combination of dollar weakness, inflation worries and doubts about a nascent economic recovery, analysts said.

Spot gold reached a record &&6;1,143.25 an ounce, and was at &&6;1,142.70 an ounce at 2:12 p.m. EST (1912 GMT), against &&6;1,118.50 late in New York on Friday.

U.S. December gold futures settled up &&6;22.50, or 2 percent, at &&6;1,139.20 an ounce on COMEX division of NYMEX.

Gold&&9;s gains were momentarily capped as the dollar managed a brief rally off lows after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed was attentive to changes in the currency. But as investors digested his comments, they decided there were no signals of change to monetary policy.

Rising equity markets also boosted the appeal of assets seen as higher risk, such as commodities and higher-yielding currencies banks issue payday loans. U.S. stocks rose almost 2 percent. (.N)

Other commodities also rallied, with the Reuters/Jefferies CRB index up nearly 3 percent, as oil rose more than &&6;2 toward &&6;80 a barrel, while base metals such as zinc and copper also climbed.

GAINS SEEN

Gold now looks poised for further gains, analysts said, with a number of call options, or rights to buy, being placed at elevated levels on U.S. December gold futures.

"There is no reason why over the next few days it can&&9;t have a push toward that &&6;1,200 mark before we get to the December expiry for the options positions, which everyone&&9;s looking at," said Tom Kendall, precious metals strategist at Mitsubishi Corp.

"There is a large bunch of &&6;1,200 calls December expiry, which are acting as a bit of a magnet for prices at the moment."

Gold&&9;s gains lifted other precious metals, with silver reaching its highest since July last year at &&6;18.43. Platinum hit &&6;1,451.50 an ounce, its highest since September 2008 and palladium reached its strongest level in 15 months at &&6;375.50.

Later, platinum was at &&6;1,444.50 an ounce against &&6;1,390, while palladium was at &&6;374 against &&6;353.50. Rhodium hit a 13-month high at &&6;2,375.

Silver was at &&6;18.41 an ounce against &&6;17.41.

(Reporting by Frank Tang and Jan Harvey; Editing by Marguerita Choy)

Gold hits record as dollar slips

&S220;Severe mental health problems are likely to surge, in the U.S. and elsewhere, unless Congress exerts dramatic leadership to help slow climate change &S212; and soon,&S221; began an e-mail message that found its way into my in-box last week.

It came from a group called Psychologists for Social Responsibility.

(I get a lot of e-mail messages.)

&S220;Many Americans are already anxious about what climate change portends,&S221; the group wrote in a letter it had apparently sent to Congress. &S220;The greater risk is that millions of people will develop severe and persistent anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, aggression, and other troubled behavior if the U.S. does not quickly lead the way to dramatically reduce carbon emissions.&S221;

I tread lightly here, as I would not want to belittle the ravages of depression and anxiety, but the question did occur to me: What possible impact could it have on the debate over climate change and what to do about it?

My suspicion: none &S212; or at least no more or less an impact than, say, studies that show women are likely to fare worse in a changing climate than men. Or a 2006 study that examined &S220;the impact of climate change on golf participation in the Greater Toronto Area.&S221; Or even a study earlier this year out of the Czech Republic, which found a reduction, as a result of warming trends, of the compound in Saaz hops responsible for the signature taste of a fine pilsner beer.

&S220;If the sinking Maldives aren&S217;t enough to galvanize action on climate change,&S221; wrote New Scientist magazine in an account of the hops study, &S220;could losing a classic beer do it?&S221;

Even as a lover of a good pilsner, I would guess the answer is no. And as for the Maldives, one might reasonably question whether the country&S217;s &S220;underwater cabinet meeting&S221; last month &S212; a stunt designed to highlight the plight of coastal and island nations threatened by rising seas &S212; changed any minds either.

&S220;Our capacity to respond quickly when our survival is at stake is often limited to the kinds of threats our ancestors survived: snakes, fires, attacks by other humans, and other tangible dangers in the here and now,&S221; writes Al Gore, the former U.S. vice president, in his latest book, &S220;Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis.&S221;

&S220;Global warming does not trigger those kinds of automatic responses.&S221;

Obviously, human beings &S212; individually and collectively &S212; have the capacity for the disciplined pursuit of more faraway goals, but Mr. Gore suggests that both information overload and the way the market values consumption and growth over conservation and economic health retard our collective ability to respond rationally to the threat of climate change.

Of course, at the macro level, businesses scrambling to block climate legislation or treaties that, as they see it, will threaten to reduce their profits and hinder their growth would seem to be acting quite rationally.

The same logic extends to nations like India and China, which have argued &S212; rather reasonably &S212; that their adolescent economies do not have the ability to compete when bound by emissions reductions. The United States, also quite reasonably, is loath to commit to binding emissions reductions of its own until nascent market competitors like India and China do the same business card.

And while it might be true, at the individual level, that ordinary citizens have difficulty appreciating the impacts of rampant consumption when, as Mr. Gore writes, &S220;virtually every Pavlovian trigger discovered in the human brain is now pulled by advertisers,&S221; it seems unlikely that most people are closeted climate crusaders in want of the right message.

The real secret &S212; no secret at all, really &S212; is on page 320 of Mr. Gore&S217;s book: &S220;The easiest, most obvious, and most efficient way to employ the power of the market in solving the climate crisis is to put a price on carbon.&S221;

Getting that done in the face of powerful opposing forces &S212; from consumers who will always want their fuel, electricity, food and clothing to be cheaper than it is, to corporations driven by the bottom line &S212; will ultimately be a matter of sheer political will.

Few world leaders are unfamiliar by now with the basic mathematics of climate change, and while some may reasonably quibble over how bad things really are, or how bad they might get and how soon, it is difficult to believe that any large number of them still wonder if human beings are contributing to a hotter, more resource-scarce planet.

On Sunday, President Barack Obama and other world leaders decided to put off the difficult task of reaching a climate change agreement at a global climate conference scheduled for next month, agreeing instead to make it the mission of the Copenhagen conference to reach a less specific &S220;politically binding&S221; agreement that would punt the most difficult issues into the future.

This comes after news late last week that Brazil, a top emitter, aimed to cut emissions by as much as 39 percent over expected 2020 levels &S212; a development that suggested the stakes for all nations had been raised.

Spurred in part by Brazil&S217;s &S220;voluntary&S221; commitment, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he was undertaking a drive to persuade other countries to come up with &S220;ambitious proposals&S221; of their own.

Perhaps he would be helped in his mission by &S220;Cats Against Climate Change.&S221;

Google that phrase and you will come across a video of an oddly chattering tabby interpreted by subtitles.

&S220;Someone left this camera on,&S221; the cat informs us, looking cautiously around the room, and then plaintively at his audience. &S220;I don&S217;t have much time, so I&S217;ll be brief.&S221;

The conceit is unnecessarily complicated, but we learn that this cat is delivering a message for another cat, Felix.

In any event, our cat tells us that Felix has concerns about the &S220;funny weather,&S221; which he attributes to &S220;the cars.&S221;

This funny weather, Felix says, heralds a wretched future of rain and puddles. &S220;He thinks the humans know,&S221; the tabby tells us, &S220;but are too lazy to deal with it.&S221;

Green Inc. Column: Sheer Political Will Is Needed for Climate Fix

Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong, back to camera, gives welcome address to APEC leaders, in Singapore, 14 Nov 2009Leaders of 21 Pacific Rim economies opened meetings in Singapore Saturday to discuss recovery from the global financial crisis and promotion of free trade.Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum leaders have stressed that the global recovery is still fragile, and more coordinated efforts are needed to overcome protectionism and maintain stable growth.U.S. President Barack Obama, on his first visit to Asia as president, arrives in Singapore from Japan within hours for the APEC meetings.Mr. Obama came under fire from some APEC leaders Saturday for allegedly backtracking on free trade.  Mexican President Filipe Calderon singled out Washington for "going in the opposite sense of free trade," while Russian President Dmitri Medvedev made the same point.Mr. Calderon mentioned increasing "buy American" clauses in U.S. legislation. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd spoke Saturday to propose a European Union-style model for cooperation, which he called the Asia-Pacific Community easy payday loans.U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said a high standard regional trade agreement under the Trans-Pacific partnership would be good for America.President Obama said Saturday the United States will engage members of the TPP, which consists of Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore.China's President Hu Jintao, speaking Friday at an Asia-Pacific meeting, said China is working hard to increase domestic demand, and he urged fellow Asian-Pacific leaders to work together to open up free trade.Mr. Hu said a major stimulus package and moderate adjustments to China's monetary policy are some of the other measures Beijing has taken. The meeting was also attended by around 800 of the world's business leaders.It was one of a series of gatherings leading up to Sunday's summit of APEC leaders.Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.

APEC Leaders Begin Meetings in Singapore

TOKYO &S212; Japan Airlines posted a $357 million loss in the latest quarter and said it was in fresh talks to suspend loan payments as the debt-ridden carrier awaited a formal go-ahead for a government-led bailout.

The airline&S217;s president, Haruka Nishimatsu, also said that it would be easier for JAL to remain within the OneWorld Alliance, seemingly giving its alliance partner American Airlines a lead over Delta in talks over a possible stake in the Japanese carrier.

Finances at JAL, which is the largest Asian carrier by revenue, have been battered by a falloff in passenger traffic in the wake of the global economic crisis. Massive pension obligations, an aging fleet and dozens of unprofitable routes have also weighed heavily on JAL&S217;s bottom line.

The carrier said Friday that its net loss sank to &<65;32.2 billion in the July-September quarter, compared to a &<65;40.1 billion profit a year earlier. Quarterly sales fell 26 percent to &<65;429 billion.

The Japanese government has said it stands by JAL and has instructed the carrier to apply for assistance from a state-backed corporate turnaround body, which could set the stage for a large injection of public funds.

The government-sponsored Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp. is studying whether the airline, which has already received three bailouts, will be able to restructure its $15 billion debt and stage a recovery.

Meanwhile, American and Delta Air Lines have shown an interest in acquiring a minority stake in the Japanese airline, which could bring a stronger foothold in Japan and access to JAL&S217;s routes in Asia.

The scramble to invest in JAL is part of a wider race by the world&S217;s biggest carriers to use alliances with global partners to expand their international reach payday loan lenders.

A tie-up with Delta would require that JAL defect to the SkyTeam alliance from OneWorld, a move that could result in financial penalties and require the Japanese and American governments to determine that the move does not violate antitrust laws.

&S220;Considering our past, continuing to stay as an American Airlines partner would make more sense,&S221; Mr. Nishimatsu told reporters in Tokyo.

&S220;Moving to a different aviation alliance would be costly&S221; and &S220;would take about two years,&S221; Mr. Nishimatsu said. &S220;We need to consider such factors.&S221;

In an effort to restructure its debt, JAL also said Friday it was seeking to suspend some loan payments through alternative dispute resolution, under which the carrier would negotiate with creditors through a third party.

The government has pledged to enlist a state bank to offer bridge loans to prevent the carrier from running short of cash and keep it airborne.

Japan is also considering legislation that would allow JAL to cut back on its pension obligations.

Shares in the airline fell 0.9 percent to &<65;106 in Tokyo ahead of the earnings announcement. JAL shares have lost half their value since the start of the year, despite a 10 percent gain in the Nikkei stock index during that time.

Japan Air Posts $357 Million Quarterly Loss

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Asia-Pacific finance ministers endorsed "market-oriented" exchange rates on Thursday and said they would stick with economic stimulus plans until a sustained economic recovery was under way.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the timing of stimulus exit policies would vary between countries, but business confidence and the financial system must be restored first. "The challenge is growth. First growth, but make sure we have business confidence restored, investments expanding again, unemployment coming down, financial sector definitively repaired -- that&&9;s our basic challenge," Geithner said in Singapore after a meeting of Pacific rim finance ministers.

The ministers of the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) discussed strengthening the post-crisis global economy to prevent asset bubbles and excess leverage with prudent macroeconomic and regulatory policies.

In a statement they agreed to "undertake monetary policies consistent with price stability in the context of market-oriented exchange rates that reflect underlying economic fundamentals."

The group includes China, which has effectively pegged its currency against the dollar since the middle of 2008 to help fend off the global downturn.

Other APEC economies aside from China manage their currencies to some degree, including Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.

U.S. President Barack Obama told Reuters in an interview this week that he would raise the currency issue on a visit to China next week. [ID:nOBAMAASIA] His administration says an undervalued yuan is one factor contributing to economic imbalances between the first- and third-biggest economies in the world.

China&&9;s central bank said on Wednesday it will consider major currencies in guiding the yuan, suggesting a departure from the effective dollar peg.

"I&&9;d say that ... is the most significant news we&&9;ve had on the yuan for months, and that APEC is more of a formal reminder from China&&9;s closest neighbors, not just the U.S. and Europe, that forex rigidity in a huge trading economy is not a domestic issue," said Westpac Banking Corporation strategist Sean Callow.

WARNING OF ECONOMIC FALSE DAWN

Emergency measures put in place by APEC member governments, including some &&6;1 trillion in Asia alone and &&6;787 billion in the United States, prevented a deeper recession, Geithner said.

However, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan told reporters before going into the APEC meeting: "What we have to do is to make sure that we don&&9;t withdraw global support too early."

"In Australia&&9;s case, our economic stimulus peaked in the middle of this year and is being gradually withdrawn as we go through the rest of the year," Swan said.

World Trade Organization Director General Pascal Lamy cautioned of a false dawn in the recovery easy payday loans.

"There&&9;s certainly a recovery happening, certainly in this region, which has suffered less from the crisis than from other regions of the planet," he told CNBC in an interview on the APEC sidelines in Singapore. "But I would be prudent whether or not this would be sustainable six months or a year from now."

He said rising unemployment was the main threat to free trade and could spark greater protectionist policies around the globe.

Jobless queues have jumped across the industrialized world since the global economic crisis erupted a year ago and have been a prime reason nervous governments have resisted calls to start winding back stimulus measures.

The U.S. jobless rate hit a 26- year high of 10.2 percent in October and economists polled by Reuters expect it to rise to 10.5 percent by the middle of next year.

APEC&&9;s trade and foreign ministers pledged to refrain from raising new barriers to trade and investment, and said a review of measures taken by member economies that began last July to ensure they were not protectionist would continue into 2010.

CLIMATE TAKES BACK SEAT

The ministerial meetings will be followed by a weekend summit of leaders of APEC, which is dominated by members of the Group of 20, including the United States, Russia, Japan and China.

Diplomats expect discussion on the sidelines on how to bring North Korea back to talks on ending its nuclear arms program, and the United States&&9; decision to engage Myanmar&&9;s junta.

On a side visit to Manila on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for the unconditional release of Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country&&9;s military leaders at the summit this weekend.

The APEC meeting represents one of the final opportunities ahead of next month&&9;s Copenhagen summit for leaders to overcome differences on the shape of a climate pact to fight rising seas, more chaotic weather and threats to crops and livelihoods.

However, there is little prospect of new initiatives emerging in Singapore this weekend and the climate agenda might instead focus on liberalizing trade in green goods and services.

APEC member economies account for 40 percent of the world&&9;s population across four continents, more than half of global gross domestic product and nearly half of world trade.

But their members range from relatively poor countries such as Papua New Guinea, Peru and the Philippines, emerging markets such as Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, and rich economies, including the United States and Japan.

(Writing by Bill Tarrant; Additional reporting by Glenn Sommerville and Vidya Ranganathan; Editing by John Chalmers)

APEC ministers endorse "market-oriented" currencies

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Asian stocks rose for a fourth day on Wednesday as reports showed Chinese factory output jumped to a 19-month high in October, while the ailing U.S. dollar hovered near a 15-month low.

The Australian dollar slid briefly below US&&6;0.93 as other data showed new loans from Chinese banks were halved compared with September, leading dealers to take profits just before the currency could retest its October highs.

Nevertheless, other indications of China&&9;s economy were within expectations and gave no sign that the recovery that has led the global economy is petering out.

"China&&9;s recovery has extended into Q4 and this momentum looks set to continue into 2010," said Brian Jackson, strategist with Royal Bank of Canada in Hong Kong.

"Growth is still heavily reliant on policy stimulus, easy liquidity and government-directed investment, but we expect to see stronger external demand in the months ahead."

In the near term, further gains in equities may be getting more difficult as the year end approaches and some investors look to take profits from this year&&9;s strong rally. Asian and global stocks had gained about 4 percent in the last week alone.

U.S. markets also struggled to build on gains overnight, mostly closing slightly lower. (.N)

The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was up 0.4 percent on Wednesday, with the materials and consumer staples sectors outperforming, while Japan&&9;s Nikkei (.N225) rose 0.2 percent.

The Thomson Reuters index of regional shares ( no fax payday loans.TRXFLDAXPU) was down 0.15 percent.

Hong Kong&&9;s Hang Seng index (.HSI) rose 1.2 percent to within striking distance of its October high.

Shares of HSBC (0005.HK) (HSBA.L) were the top boost to the index, surging 4.7 percent after Europe&&9;s top lender said overnight it saw its first improvement in three years in U.S. consumer credit.

In currency markets, the U.S. dollar remained under pressure, though some analysts began to anticipate a corrective move higher as market participants begin to price in the fading effect of stimulus spending around the world.

"The USD correction, when it happens, is likely to be particularly vicious versus the Australian dollar (AUD), New Zealand dollar (NZD), Canadian dollar (CAD), South African rand (ZAR), and Brazilian real (BRL) given market positioning and valuations," Standard Chartered strategists said in a note.

The ICE Futures U.S. dollar index (.DXY), a measure of its value against six other major currencies, slipped 0.1 percent to its lowest since August 8.

The index is down 7.7 percent so far this year.

Oil edged above &&6;79 a barrel, after dipping a day earlier, as signs of robust economic growth in China offset mildly bearish U.S. industry data showing surprise increases in crude and distillate stockpiles.

(Editing by Kim Coghill)

Asia stocks up 4th day; China data supportive

Responding to critics of last week’s decision by the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme not to suspend Zimbabwe over charges of human rights abuses in the eastern Marange diamond field, outgoing Kimberly Process Chairman Bernard Esau said that the Harare government has done much to address problems in the Manicaland province district.

Esau added in an interview with VOA Studio 7 reporter Sandra Nyaira that diamonds from the field are not funding conflict and Harare needs help to comply with Kimberly standards.

But Mutare-based analyst Farai Maguwu of the Center for Research and Development said Esau’s explanation won’t keep independent groups from speaking out on Marange, where Human Rights Watch says the military in control has killed more than 200 people cash loans.

More reports from VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe...

Kimberly Process Chair Defends Recent Decision Not to Suspend Zimbabwe

NEW YORK – The following stocks were among those that moved substantially or traded heavily Monday on the New York Stock Exchange:

NYSE:

RadioShack Corp., up $2.53 at $20.27

The electronics retailer said it would sell Apple Inc.'s popular iPhone, and an analyst said that could boost customer traffic.

Revlon Inc., up $4.01 at $14.79

An analyst upgraded the company due to improvements in market share, falling administrative and probable lower advertising costs.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co., up $2.58 at $37.59

Potential growth overseas and lower prices should help the companys sales, said two analysts as they upgraded the company.

Kraft Foods Inc., down 25 cents at $26.53

Cadbury rejected the food company's hostile takeover bid of more than $16 billion, whose terms were unchanged from an earlier offer.

Eldorado Gold Corp bad credit cash loans., up 77 cents at $13.12

Gold prices hit another record at $1,111.70 an ounce as the dollar crumpled, driving up shares of the gold miner and processor.

Lexman International Inc., down $1.20 at $25.48

Goldman Sachs put the printer manufacturer on its sell list, saying its stock price is "unsustainable" given its slow equipment sales.

NASDAQ:

Wynn Resorts Ltd., up $3.81 at $63.54

The companys board declared a special cash dividend of $4 per common share as well as a regular quarterly dividend program for 2010.

Dish Network Corp., up 99 cents at $20.14

Shares hit a 12-month high as it added 241,000 net subscribers in the third quarter and declared a one-time dividend of $2 per share.

RadioShack, Revlon, Dish Network are big movers

NEW YORK (AFP) – Wall Street&&9;s gravity-defying rally found new life over the past week, providing optimism for investors heading into what has historically been one of the best periods of the year.

The markets were able to shake off a disappointing report on the US labor market that sparked renewed doubts about the economic recovery.

Some analysts say the market is gaining confidence slowly that an economic recovery will take root soon. Others say the rally, like the recovery, remains fragile.

Over the past week the Dow Jones Industrial Average vaulted 3.2 percent to end Friday at 10,023.42, as the market rebounded from two weekly losses.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite advanced 3.29 percent to 2,112.44 and the broad-market Standard & Poor&&9;s 500 index rallied 3.2 percent to 1,069.30.

The market rallied for most of the week in anticipation of Friday&&9;s labor market report, which turned out to be a disappointment. It showed US unemployment jumped to double digits in October for the first time since 1983, reaching 10.2 percent despite narrowing job losses.

Analysts said the report highlighted slow progress in bringing down unemployment as the economy emerges from recession.

Cary Leahey, senior economist at Decision Economics, said that the stock market has been able to rally on signs of stronger corporate profits, as companies shed workers to boost their bottom line.

"You have a V-shaped recovery in earnings but the V has stalled in employment," he said. "That&&9;s why the stock market can rise even when the situation for many Americans is so bad."

Linda Duessel at Federated Investors said, meanwhile, she expects "upside surprises that are not yet priced into stocks."

She said consumer spending is recovering, and this is seen in sales of retail goods as well as automobiles, which have topped most forecasts.

"The jobs picture isn&&9;t as clear, but today&&9;s October report sported a big jump in temporary hiring, which is a key component of the monthly jobs report that we have been focusing on, as it is a reliable indicator that tends to lead changes in payrolls by 4-1/2 months on average," she said.

Duessel said manufacturing, real estate and credit are all showing positive signs as well easy payday loans.

David Rosenberg, chief economist at Gluskin Sheff & Associates, said the stunning market rally of some 60 percent since March has been fueled by speculative cash and a recovery supported by extraordinary government stimulus.

"If the overwhelming consensus is correct that the recession is behind us, then what we have on our hands is the mother of all jobless recoveries," Rosenberg said.

"The stock market has had a history this year of shrugging off weak employment report after weak employment report because the expectation is that we will see further rounds of fiscal stimulus, so it&&9;s hard to say what equity investors will do with this latest piece of data."

US Global Investors chief executive Frank Holmes said the market has pulled through what is historically the most difficult period of the year and now faces a generally upbeat season.

"November and December are two of the best months over the past 50 years," he said.

"There are, of course, no assurances, that this year will follow the strong November-December historical trend. In 2007, for instance, the Dow dropped nearly five percent in the last two months of the year as the US and other countries slipped into recession."

Sam Stovall, equity analyst at Standard and Poor&&9;s, said the past week "was a good example of how determined both the bulls and the bears are on their near-term positions."

"The market may move to a period of digestion and need a new catalyst, whether it&&9;s guidance from companies, news from economic data or any kind of developments in (merger) activity," he said.

Bonds fell on the week. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond increased to 3.503 percent from 3.392 percent a week earlier and that on the 30-year bond rose to 4.394 percent against 4.236 percent. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

The coming week has a light menu of economic news, including data on the US trade balance. Results are due from retail giant Wal-Mart and the Walt Disney Co.

Wall Street rally gets second wind

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. unemployment rate unexpectedly jumped to 10.2 percent in October, breaching the politically sensitive double-digit barrier for the first time in 26-1/2 years, even though the pace of job losses slowed.

A Labor Department report showed on Friday that employers cut 190,000 jobs last month, more than the 175,000 markets had expected. Economists had looked for the jobless rate to rise to only 9.9 percent from 9.8 percent the prior month.

The government revised job losses for August and September to show 91,000 fewer jobs lost than previously reported.

U.S. stock index futures turned negative on the data, while government debt prices rose.

"The unemployment rate of 10.2 percent is problematic because it gives a sense of urgency to Washington, D.C. Washington will be looking for any increase in stimulus," said Tom Sowanick, co-president and chief investment officer at Omnivest Group.

President Barack Obama has called job creation priority No. 1, but the scope to take further steps to lift the economy is limited by record budget deficits.

Mounting unemployment could pose problems for the Democrats who control Congress as they head into congressional elections in November 2010. This week, Republicans wrested control of two state governorships away from Democrats in races where the weak economy figured prominently.

The labor market is being watched for signs whether the economic recovery that started in the third quarter can be sustained without government support. The economy grew at a 3.5 percent annualized rate in the July-September period, probably ending the most painful U.S. recession in 70 years.

Labor market sluggishness and weak wage growth suggest inflation is unlikely to get out of hand anytime soon, giving the Federal Reserve scope to maintain supportive policies no fax payday loan.

The U.S. central bank on Wednesday held overnight interest rates close to zero percent and said it would keep them extraordinarily low as long as excess economic slack and a lack of inflation warning signs prevailed.

"The Fed will stay on hold even longer with less likelihood of giving a concrete answer to when and how to withdraw quantitative easing," said Joseph Trevisani, senior market analyst at FX Solution in Saddler River, New Jersey.

Payrolls have declined for 22 consecutive months now, throwing 7.3 million people out of work since December 2007, when the recession started.

However, the pace of layoffs has slowed sharply from early this year, when nearly three-quarters of a million jobs were lost in January. In October, job losses were across almost all sectors, with education and health services and professional and business services bucking the trend.

Manufacturing employment fell 61,000 last month, while construction industries payrolls dropped 62,000.

The service-providing sector cut 61,000 workers in October and goods-producing industries slashed 129,000 positions. Education and health services added 45,000 jobs, while government employment was flat.

The average workweek, which closely correlates with overall output and gives clues on when firms will start hiring, was steady at 33 hours in October. Average hourly earnings rose to &&6;18.72 from &&6;18.67 in September.

(Additional reporting by Nick Olivari and Jennifer Ablan in New York; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

U.S. unemployment rate hits 10.2 percent