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(Reuters) -Electric aircraft maker Beta Technologies said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday that it was aiming for a U.S. listing valuing the company at about $7.22 billion. Vermont-based Beta plans to offer 25 million shares priced between $27 and $33 each and is seeking to raise up to $825 million. The offering comes amid a rebound in U.S. IPO activity driven by easing market volatility, which is lifting investor sentiment after a period of trade policy uncertainty. Despite the U.S. government shutdown, companies can allow their statements to become effective automatically, which involves setting their IPO pricing 20 days before the listing instead of finalizing it the night before after a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission review. Cornerstone investors including Alliance Bernstein, BlackRock, Ellipse, GE Aerospace and Federated may buy up to $300 million in Class A shares in the offering. Beta designs, manufactures and sells high-performance electric aircraft, advanced electric propulsion systems, charging systems and components. The company filed for an initial public offering in late September and reported a net loss of $25.57 per share for the six months ended June 30, compared with $19.38 per share a year earlier. It will list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "BETA". Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, BofA Securities, Jefferies and Citigroup are among the underwriters for the offering. (Reporting by Anuj T in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)

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By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. again purchased Argentine pesos in the open market on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters, adding that the department was working with banks and investment funds to create a $20 billion facility to invest in the South American country's sovereign debt. Bessent said during a press conference that the facility would sit alongside a new $20 billion U.S. currency swap line for Argentina, providing a total of $40 billion in support for Latin America's third-largest economy. Bessent did not provide details of the peso operation, which follows an initial U.S. purchase on October 9. He also clarified that the U.S. would continue to support Argentina financially as long as President Javier Milei's government pursues "good policies," regardless of the outcome of a parliamentary election on October 26. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the U.S. would not "waste our time" with Argentina if Milei's party loses the elections. Bessent said the Trump administration's support for Argentina "is not election-specific," but a win for Milei's La Libertad Avanza party would ensure that the right-wing Argentine president has a sufficient majority to be able to veto policies aimed at ending his libertarian fiscal austerity agenda and free-market overhauls of the country's crisis-prone economy. "It is policy-specific. So as long as Argentina continues enacting good policy, they will have U.S. support," Bessent said. BESSENT SAYS 'WE COULD' BUY DEBT Asked if the peso operation would be accompanied by U.S. purchases of Argentine debt, Bessent said, "We could," without elaborating. Work on the private-sector debt investment facility has been underway for weeks, but Bessent did not provide a timeline for any debt purchases. "So it is a private-sector solution to Argentina's upcoming debt payments," Bessent said. "Many banks are interested in it, and many sovereign funds have expressed interest in being part of it." The Trump administration has disclosed few details about the $20 billion swap line that it has pledged to Argentina. Bessent confirmed it would be backed by International Monetary Fund Special Drawing Rights assets that are held in the Treasury's Exchange Stabilization Fund and would be converted to dollars. Asked whether the U.S. would assume a preferred creditor status ahead of the IMF or private-sector lenders, Bessent said: "No, that's what China does, we don't do that." (Reporting by David Lawder; editing by Paul Simao)

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(Reuters) -Core Scientific's board urged its shareholders on Wednesday to vote for the company's proposed sale to CoreWeave. (Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Pooja Desai)

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By Noel Randewich (Reuters) -The S&P 500 ended higher on Wednesday, with Morgan Stanley and Bank of America rallying after solid quarterly results, while investors remained focused on the recent increase in China-U.S. trade tensions. Morgan Stanley's shares jumped 4.7% to a record high, while Bank of America rose 4.4% after the top lenders beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit on dealmaking strength.  The S&P 500 banking index rose 1.2% in its first three-day winning streak in more than three weeks. A day earlier, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase reported solid performance in investment banking and predicted that the business would continue to boom. This week's bank results indicate strength for major U.S. companies as third-quarter earnings season kicks off, and they also provide hints of the economy's health while many macroeconomic reports remain on hold due to a government shutdown. "People are spending, and the consumer seems to be fine. That's been one of the messages from the bank earnings," said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at GLOBALT in Atlanta. "Employment is not falling like a stone. Both inflation and employment are within ranges that are basically reasonable." The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 3% after ASML reported third-quarter orders and operating income above market expectations, lifted by booming AI investment. ASML's U.S. stock rallied 2.7%. An investment consortium including BlackRock, Microsoft and Nvidia will buy one of the world's biggest data center operators in a $40 billion deal. Shares of data center firms rose, with Applied Digital surging. The S&P 500 climbed 0.40% to end the session at 6,671.06 points. The Nasdaq gained 0.66% to 22,670.08 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.04% to 46,253.31 points. Seven of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by real estate, up 1.5%, followed by a 1.29% gain in utilities. Volume on U.S. exchanges was relatively heavy, with 21.5 billion shares traded, compared with an average of 20.4 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that Washington did not want to escalate a trade conflict with China, emphasizing that President Donald Trump is ready to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea later this month. On Tuesday, Trump said Washington was considering cutting some trade ties with China, including in relation to cooking oil. The two countries this week began imposing tit-for-tat port fees. Bessent also said he plans to present three or four Federal Reserve chief candidates to Trump for him to interview sometime after the U.S.  Thanksgiving holiday. Fed Governor Stephen Miran at a CNBC event said "two more cuts this year sounds realistic," noting that the labor market has clearly weakened. Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday also left the door open to rate cuts.  The Fed said in its latest Beige Book report compiled through October 6 that some employers reported cutting jobs due to economic uncertainty, and in some cases, due to increased investment in AI. The report also showed the labor supply in hospitality, agriculture, construction and manufacturing was strained due to the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. Abbott declined 2.4% following downbeat quarterly revenue from the medical equipment maker. Progressive Corp fell 5.8% after the insurer reported third-quarter results. Bunge jumped almost 13%, despite the grain trader lowering its 2025 earnings forecast following its merger with Viterra. The number of declining stocks matched rising ones within the S&P 500. The S&P 500 posted 34 new highs and 5 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 154 new highs and 46 new lows. (Reporting by Sukriti Gupta and Twesha Dikshit in Bengaluru, and by Noel Randewich in San Francisco; Editing by Maju Samuel and Matthew Lewis)

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By Chibuike Oguh NEW YORK (Reuters) -The U.S. dollar fell against the euro and yen on Wednesday with market sentiment weakened by the continuing trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Traders analyzed comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for cues on upcoming rate cuts amid a U.S. government shutdown, which has hampered the timely release of key data. The dollar weakened 0.39% to 151.24 against the Japanese yen and was down 0.49% to 0.797 against the Swiss franc, on track for the second straight session of losses against both safe-haven currencies.  Top U.S. officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, blasted China's major expansion of rare earths export controls as a threat to global supply chains. Greer described China's export controls as a complete repudiation of U.S.-Chinese trade agreements over the past six months although he and Bessent stressed that Washington did not want to escalate the conflict. President Donald Trump had threatened to impose tariffs on China last week in retaliation. The Chinese commerce ministry defended the rare-earths controls, pointing to a series of U.S. measures on Chinese goods and companies and calling it hypocritical. "The market is showing an impressive ability to shrug off trade-related headlines and there's a firm belief that the U.S. and China will find a way to move forward and will make an agreement," said Adam Button, chief currency analyst at ForexLive. "The headlines continued to be inflammatory, including today from Bessent and Greer. But the market saw how Trump quickly de-escalated over the weekend and doesn't yet believe he wants a real fight." The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.32% to 98.72, on track for the second consecutive session of losses. The Fed's Beige Book showed that U.S. economic activity was little changed and employment was largely stable in recent weeks, although there were emerging signs of weakness including more layoffs and middle- and lower-income  households pulling back on spending.  Powell, in a speech on Tuesday, left the door open to rate cuts by saying the U.S. labor market remained mired in low-hiring, low-firing doldrums. He said the absence of official economic data due to the government shutdown has not prevented policymakers from being able to assess the economic outlook, at least for now. Markets are currently priced for a quarter-point cut at the October 28-29 Fed gathering and another at the following meeting in December, followed by three more cuts next year, according to LSEG data. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes fell 1.6 basis points to 4.038%. Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher as companies continued to report strong results as the quarterly earnings season kicked off. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.04%, the S&P 500 rose 0.40% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.66%.   The euro rose 0.35% to $1.1646 after gaining 0.3% in the previous session, supported by the French government's proposal to suspend landmark pension reforms. "Even if the French political upheaval has started to moderate, outright bullish catalysts are lacking for the euro at this stage," TS Lombard analysts led by Daniel von Ahlen wrote in an investor note. "Meanwhile, the recent performance of the EUR/USD is now on par with the past rallies following maor policy announcements in the euro area, which adds to our tactical caution on the common currency." The New Zealand dollar edged up only 0.1% to $0.5721, after dipping to a six-month low of $0.56839 on Tuesday.  The Aussie climbed 0.39% to $0.651, after falling 0.5% a day earlier, when it touched the lowest since August 22 at $0.64405.     (Reporting by Chibuike Oguh in New York; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak in New York, Kevin Buckland in Tokyo and Lucy Raitano in London; Editing by Aurora Ellis and Cynthia Osterman)

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By Luc Cohen NEW YORK (Reuters) -A woman who says she was abused by the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sued Bank of America and the Bank of New York Mellon on Wednesday, alleging the banks knowingly provided financial services that enabled his sex trafficking operation for years.  Bank of America, the second-largest U.S. bank, declined to comment. BNY did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  The woman, referred to in court papers as Jane Doe, is seeking an unspecified amount of damages from both banks. She is represented by law firms Boies Schiller and Edwards Henderson, who previously secured settlements of $75 million and $290 million with Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan , respectively, over their alleged financial ties to Epstein.  Neither Deutsche nor JPMorgan admitted wrongdoing in agreeing to settle.  CONGRESS PROBES EPSTEIN CASE  Epstein died by suicide in 2019 in jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. The circumstances of his death, as well as his social relationships with wealthy and powerful individuals, fueled theories that others were involved in his crimes.  His case has become a political headache for President Donald Trump's administration. After pledging during the 2024 campaign to release files from the Justice Department's investigation into Epstein, the administration reversed course this year, prompting an outcry from Trump's conservative base and members of Congress.  The House Oversight Committee is now investigating the Epstein case.  In both lawsuits, Jane Doe said she met Epstein in 2011 while she was living in Russia. She said she became financially dependent on Epstein, who raped her, forcibly touched her, and forced her to engage in sex acts with other women at least 100 times between 2011 and 2019.  "As Congress works toward unraveling how Jeffrey Epstein was able to orchestrate his criminal sex trafficking enterprise for decades without detection, we are taking another important step forward toward justice for survivors," Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer for Jane Doe, said in a statement.  DOE SAYS EPSTEIN PAID HER RENT   Jane Doe said she opened a Bank of America account in 2013 at the direction of Richard Kahn, Epstein's former accountant, and that Kahn regularly sent her money for rent through the account.  Lawyers for Kahn did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  Doe said in 2015, Kahn's assistant told her that Epstein was adding her to the payroll for a "sham company" and that she would receive funds through her Bank of America account. She said she did not know the purpose of those payments.  Her lawyers wrote that those transactions should have raised red flags for Bank of America. Epstein had pleaded guilty to state-level prostitution charges in Florida in 2008 as part of an arrangement that allowed him to avoid federal prosecution.  The lawsuit against BNY said the bank gave a line of credit to MC2, a modeling agency that the lawsuit said Epstein and French model scout Jean-Luc Brunel used to traffic victims. In total, BNY processed $378 million in payments to women trafficked by Epstein, the lawsuit said.  Brunel was arrested in December 2020 and was found dead in jail in 2022, according to Parisian prosecutors.  Both lawsuits said the banks should have filed Suspicious Activity Reports with the U.S. Treasury Department. The lawsuits said such reports could have helped law enforcement stop Epstein sooner.   (Reporting by Luc Cohen and Saeed Azhar in New York; Editing by Chris Reese, Rod Nickel)

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By Noel Randewich (Reuters) -The S&P 500 ended higher on Wednesday, with Morgan Stanley and Bank of America rallying after solid quarterly results, while investors remained focused on the recent increase in China-U.S. trade tensions. Morgan Stanley's shares jumped 4.7% to a record high, while Bank of America rose 4.4% after the top lenders beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit on dealmaking strength.  The S&P 500 banking index rose 1.2% in its first three-day winning streak in more than three weeks. A day earlier, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase reported solid performance in investment banking and predicted that the business would continue to boom. This week's bank results indicate strength for major U.S. companies as third-quarter earnings season kicks off, and they also provide hints of the economy's health while many macroeconomic reports remain on hold due to a government shutdown. "People are spending, and the consumer seems to be fine. That's been one of the messages from the bank earnings," said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at GLOBALT in Atlanta. "Employment is not falling like a stone. Both inflation and employment are within ranges that are basically reasonable." The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 3% after ASML reported third-quarter orders and operating income above market expectations, lifted by booming AI investment. ASML's U.S. stock rallied 2.7%. An investment consortium including BlackRock, Microsoft and Nvidia will buy one of the world's biggest data center operators in a $40 billion deal. Shares of data center firms rose, with Applied Digital surging. The S&P 500 climbed 0.40% to end the session at 6,671.06 points. The Nasdaq gained 0.66% to 22,670.08 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.04% to 46,253.31 points. Seven of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by real estate, up 1.5%, followed by a 1.29% gain in utilities. Volume on U.S. exchanges was relatively heavy, with 21.5 billion shares traded, compared with an average of 20.4 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that Washington did not want to escalate a trade conflict with China, emphasizing that President Donald Trump is ready to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea later this month. On Tuesday, Trump said Washington was considering cutting some trade ties with China, including in relation to cooking oil. The two countries this week began imposing tit-for-tat port fees. Bessent also said he plans to present three or four Federal Reserve chief candidates to Trump for him to interview sometime after the U.S.  Thanksgiving holiday. Fed Governor Stephen Miran at a CNBC event said "two more cuts this year sounds realistic," noting that the labor market has clearly weakened. Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday also left the door open to rate cuts.  The Fed said in its latest Beige Book report compiled through October 6 that some employers reported cutting jobs due to economic uncertainty, and in some cases, due to increased investment in AI. The report also showed the labor supply in hospitality, agriculture, construction and manufacturing was strained due to the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. Abbott declined 2.4% following downbeat quarterly revenue from the medical equipment maker. Progressive Corp fell 5.8% after the insurer reported third-quarter results. Bunge jumped almost 13%, despite the grain trader lowering its 2025 earnings forecast following its merger with Viterra. The number of declining stocks matched rising ones within the S&P 500. The S&P 500 posted 34 new highs and 5 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 154 new highs and 46 new lows. (Reporting by Sukriti Gupta and Twesha Dikshit in Bengaluru, and by Noel Randewich in San Francisco; Editing by Maju Samuel and Matthew Lewis)

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CHICAGO (Reuters) -United Airlines on Wednesday forecast a higher-than-expected profit in the fourth quarter on the back of robust demand for premium travel and improved pricing power. The Chicago-based airline expects an adjusted profit in the range of $3.00 a share to $3.50 per share in the quarter through December. The midpoint of the forecast is $3.25 per share, compared with analysts' average estimate of $2.86, according to LSEG data. United's third-quarter adjusted profit came in at $2.78 a share, topping analysts' expectations of $2.63 a share. Its earnings report comes barely a week after rival Delta Air Lines forecast record earnings in the December quarter. Both United and Delta have consistently outperformed the broader airline industry since the pandemic by focusing on high-margin revenue streams that tap into the financial strength of premium, corporate, and international travelers. This has led to a growing divide in the earnings of U.S. carriers. While Delta and United are generating most of the industry's profits, more domestic-focused, budget-oriented carriers are grappling with softer demand and greater pricing pressure. United generated $15.2 billion in revenue in the third-quarter, an increase of 2.6% from a year ago. Its premium revenue was up 6%, while loyalty revenue grew 9%. (Reporting by Rajesh Kumar Singh; Editing by Chris Reese)

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By David Lawder and Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Top U.S. officials on Wednesday blasted China's major expansion of rare earth export controls as a threat to global supply chains, but said Beijing could still change course and avoid steps by Washington to decouple from the world's second-largest economy. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told a press conference that China's new export restrictions were a "global supply-chain power grab" and the U.S. and its allies would not accept the restrictions, but he and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stressed that Washington did not want to escalate the conflict, which has roiled financial markets and sent U.S.-China relations into a tailspin. As of Tuesday night, U.S. President Donald Trump was still expecting to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea later this month, Bessent said. Greer told reporters that China has not yet implemented the revised regulatory system for rare earths and could still back away, just as the U.S. had not implemented a retaliatory 100% increase in tariffs on Chinese imports. "These are drafted, or in draft, so it's quite real, but our expectation is that they won't implement this and that we'll be able to be back to where we were a week ago where we had the tariff levels we've agreed to and we have the flow of rare earths that we agreed to," Greer said. Neither official would discuss possible outcomes for negotiations aimed at averting the restrictions and U.S. retaliation, which includes a threat by Trump to increase tariffs on Chinese imports by an additional 100%. The two sides have maintained lower tariffs and continued Chinese rare earth flows under a delicate, six-month truce that has been repeatedly extended for 90 days at a time but Bessent suggested a longer extension was possible. "We are currently in a 90-day roll on the tariffs, so is it possible that we could go for a longer roll in return for a delay? Perhaps, but all that's going to be negotiated in the coming weeks before the leaders meet in Korea," he said. TRADE WAR CLOUDS OUTLOOK Their comments came hours after the U.S. and China rolled out tit-for-tat port fees on each other's ships, opening a new front in their bitter trade fight. Escalation of U.S.-China trade tensions overshadowed the International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings in Washington. In its World Economic Outlook released on Tuesday, the IMF had upgraded its global growth forecast in part due to the superpowers' recent detente. Bessent said U.S. and Chinese officials were meeting on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank gathering to arrange the Trump-Xi meeting, adding that it was the level of trust between the two leaders that had prevented escalation of the tariffs in the past. Greer and Bessent, who have met personally with senior Chinese officials four times in four different European cities in recent months, called China's actions, which threaten to upend global supply chains a "clear repudiation" of prior U.S.-China agreements. UNRELIABLE SUPPLIER? The U.S. does not want to economically decouple from China, but would have to take action if Beijing proved to be an unreliable supplier, Bessent said, noting that Chinese officials recently told U.S. auto companies that a slowdown in shipments of rare earth magnets was "probably something" to do with a holiday. "Not only is China fueling Russia's war (in Ukraine), but China's actions have once again demonstrated the risk of being dependent on them, on rare earths and for that matter, anything," Bessent said, adding, "If China wants to be an unreliable partner to the world, then the world will have to decouple." He said Washington had further measures it could deploy, including export controls, if Beijing proceeded, and was also ready to tariff China over its purchases of Russian oil, as long as European partners joined in. The U.S. has slapped additional tariffs on India over its smaller purchases of Russian oil, but has refrained for now from taking action against China. Members of the Group of Seven advanced economies are expected to discuss the issue during a meeting later on Wednesday on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank meetings. "While there are substantial actions we can take, we'd rather not. I believe China's open to discussion and I am optimistic that this can be de-escalated," Bessent said. The U.S. would also produce photographs supplied by the Ukrainian government that showed Chinese parts were used in Russian drones operating in Ukraine, Bessent said through a spokesperson. Earlier on Wednesday, the Treasury secretary told a CNBC event that China had clearly intended to take action "all along," rejecting Beijing's claim that the actions were a response to U.S. actions, including the new U.S. port fees. He told CNBC that a senior Chinese trade official had threatened as early as August to "unleash chaos on the global system" if the U.S. went ahead with the port fee increases. Bessent named the official as Li Chenggang, China's chief trade negotiator and a subordinate of Vice Premier He Lifeng, who has participated in all the U.S.-China talks. (Reporting by David Lawder and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Andrea Ricci and Paul Simao)

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By Ann Saphir (Reuters) -U.S. economic activity was little changed and employment was largely stable in recent weeks, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday, but there were emerging signs of weakness including more layoffs and middle- and lower-income households pulling back on spending.  "In most Districts, more employers reported lowering headcount through layoffs and attrition, with contacts citing weaker demand, elevated economic uncertainty, and, in some cases, increased investment in artificial intelligence technologies," the Fed said in its latest "Beige Book" report, a compendium of survey results, interviews, and other qualitative data from the 12 regional Fed banks.  "Nevertheless, labor supply in the hospitality, agriculture, construction, and manufacturing sectors was reportedly strained in several Districts due to recent changes to immigration policies."  Published two weeks ahead of each Fed interest-rate-setting meeting, the report is meant to help central bankers assess the nation's health with more timely, and often more colorful, insight than is available in the official statistics.   With the data vacuum left by the government shutdown, the Beige Book may get more weight than usual in Fed policymaker deliberations, following their decision last month to reduce the policy rate a quarter of a percentage point.  The report landed on the day that the Bureau of Labor Statistics had been scheduled to release a key inflation report, now delayed by the government shutdown until October 24. All other federal economic data, including a monthly retail sales report due Thursday, won't be published until the government is reopened. The Beige Book said that overall national consumption "inched down," particularly on retail goods. Five of the Fed's 12 regions reported lower consumer spending. "Some retailers were cautiously optimistic about the upcoming holiday sales season, but a few expect holiday sales to be 'meh,' and noted that tariffs may soon cause prices to rise, resulting in further softening of demand," said the Atlanta Fed, one of five banks reporting lower consumer spending. "Diners continued to pull back by skipping desserts and/or alcoholic beverages."  Spending patterns diverged along wealth and income lines, with lower- and middle-income households showing heightened sensitivity to inflation and upper-income consumers accounting for most spending gains in some districts. "Community contacts report rising food pantry usage among both low- and middle-income households, growing reliance on 'buy now, pay later' services, and elevated credit card delinquency rates," the St. Louis Fed reported. "A hotel owner in Missouri reported that travel demand had dipped in the past few months, especially among middle-class consumers, and described the current environment as a 'middle-class recession' that is affecting select-service hotels." The latest Beige Book summarizes information collected from the commercial and community contacts of each of the Fed's 12 regional banks through October 6.  Its mention of layoffs lines up with a rise in unemployment insurance claims estimated by Wall Street firms as they track state-by-state reports in the absence of nationwide reporting. Fed policymakers say their recent rate cut, and the likelihood of more reductions to come, stems from downside risks in the labor market. "A South Carolina home builder reported a decline in demand due to increased prices, which they said would result in imminent layoffs," the Richmond Fed said. "One manufacturer said that they had postponed layoffs while waiting for industrial production to recover but could not delay cuts any longer," reported the Cleveland Fed. At the same time, prices continued to rise, driven largely by tariffs. "Tariff-induced input cost increases were reported across many Districts, but the extent of those higher costs passing through to final prices varied," the Fed said in the report, which featured the word 'tariff' 64 times, fewer than the previous report. In the Fed's August Beige Book, "tariff" arose 100 times.   Meanwhile there were fresh hints that companies were dealing with a smaller pool of available workers due to the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, as well as uncertainty about or outright softening in demand for their services and products.  "A few contacts in construction and manufacturing noted more difficulty finding workers for their entry-level positions,and they attributed that to reduced immigration," the San Francisco Fed said.   "Outlooks deteriorated with slowing demand, policy uncertainty, and inflation highlighted as the top concerns for businesses," the Dallas Fed reported. Though financial markets are betting heavily on another interest-rate reduction at the Fed's October 28-29 meeting, central bankers appear closely divided and say they are tracking conversations with business and community leaders particularly closely.  "Anecdotes become data," St. Louis Federal Reserve President Alberto Musalem said last week. "Sometimes you have moments where you have been hearing a story for the past six or 12 months, but suddenly a new story emerges and you get these inflection points and, you often get those in the conversations before you get them in the data." (Reporting by Ann Saphir, Howard Schneider, Dan Burns; Editing by Andrea Ricci and Nick Zieminski)

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