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JEFFERSON CITY - The gambling industry will fight Gov. Jay Nixon’s proposal to raise casino entrance fees by $1 per patron to help finance the state’s veterans homes.

Casino lobbyist Mike Winter told the House Veterans Committee on Tuesday that the proposal amounts to “a bottom-line hit of $53 million for our companies” each year and could prompt cuts in marketing, capital projects and staffing at the state’s 12 casinos.

Legislators said they’re open to compromise but made clear that they’re adamant about finding a dedicated source of money to operate the state’s seven nursing homes for veterans and possibly, build a new home to accommodate a mounting waiting list.

“Our veterans are out of money in 2013,” said Rep. Charlie Davis, R-Webbb City. “If something doesn’t happen, where are they going to go?”

The Missouri Veterans Commission’s $80 million budget is funded roughly 40 percent from federal money, 35 percent from charges paid by residents of veterans homes and 25 percent by the state.

In recent years, as tax collections have lagged, the state has reduced the general revenue it puts into the veterans commission’s budget, from nearly $31 million in 2009 to $18.6 million this year.

The state now wants to tap the veterans commission’s surplus to help pay operating expenses at the homes, which include one in Bellefontaine Neighbors in St. Louis County.

But that trust fund was designed to cover repair bills when a boiler breaks at a veterans home, as well as the state’s share of construction costs for any new homes. The fund also pays operating costs at the state’s six veterans cemeteries and grants for local programs that help veterans sign up for federal benefits.

While the trust fund now stands at $17 million, it will run dry by June 2013 if it is used at the projected rate of spending, Larry Kay, the commission’s executive director told the House committee on Tuesday.

Kay said the veterans commission needs a funding source that provides at least $35 million a year “just to stay even.”

Nixon’s budget proposal, which he released last week, would pump about $50 million a year into the veterans commission’s budget through a $1 fee increase for every gambler who goes through the casino turnstiles.

The current entrance fee is $2, with half going to the state and half to the home-dock city or county. Last year the veterans trust fund got $6.5 million under a law that divvies up the state’s share of those proceeds.

Winter, who lobbies for the Missouri Gaming Association, noted that casinos also pay a tax equaling 21 percent of their adjusted gross revenue, with most of that money going toward elementary and secondary education.

Combining the tax and the entrance fee, Missouri’s effective tax rate is about 27 percent for casinos now, which he portrayed as high compared to states such as Nevada, which he said charges only 6.75 percent.

However, the Missouri Gaming Commission’s annual report showed Missouri is competitive with most nearby states.

At 27.18 percent, Missouri’s effective tax rate is lower than Illinois (33.92 percent) and Indiana (31.31 percent) but higher than Kansas (25.08 percent), Iowa (22.33 percent) and Mississippi (11.94 percent), according to the latest report.

Legislators pointed out that casinos could pass any entrance fee increase on to their patrons. But Winter said they have no plans to do so. They absorb the current $2 fee.

The gambling industry got some backing from the Missouri Chamber of Commerce & Industry, which said veterans homes were a statewide responsibility that should not be borne by “a single sector.”

But Dewey Riehn, who represents the Veterans of Foreign Wars, said a higher admission fee wouldn’t break casinos, which pulled in $1.8 billion last year.

“If they think they can convince me that a $1 entry fee will cause them to close boats, that’s ridiculous,” Riehn said.

Missouri has the 14th largest population of veterans, according to federal statistics.

In addition to St. Louis County, the state operates veterans homes in Cameron, Cape Girardeau, Mexico, Mt. Vernon, St. James and Warrensburg.

The state’s 1,350 beds are 99 percent full; there are 1,691 people on the waiting list.

In addition to a higher casino entrance fee, legislators are considering asking state voters to pass a constitutional amendment establishing a special Missouri Lottery ticket, with proceeds earmarked for veterans programs.

The sponsor, Rep. Sheila Solon, R-Blue Springs, said a dedicated lottery ticket would not provide a “total fix” but had helped pump money into veterans programs in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas and Texas.

“We need to take care of our veterans,” said Solon, who also sponsors the casino fee increase. “These brave heroes have defended us.”

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Service industries in the U.K. grew at the fastest pace in five months in December and strengthened in the U.S., suggesting their economies are partly withstanding to the euro-area debt crisis.

A gauge of U.K. services activity based on the survey of purchasing managers (PMITSUK) rose to 54 from 52.1 in November, Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said today in London. A U.S. services index rose to 52.6 in December from 52 the previous month.

The data suggest the U.K. economy strengthened in December after surveys earlier this week showed construction and manufacturing improved. Still, the euro-area crisis is clouding the outlook for the global recovery. The Bank of England said today banks may toughen loan terms because of the debt turmoil, hampering growth, while some Federal Reserve officials have said prospective economic conditions may warrant

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Deutsche Telekom and AT&T vowed Thursday to press ahead with the planned sale of the German company’s T-Mobile USA unit to the U.S. cell phone operator despite concerns raised by American authorities.

Nevertheless, AT&T said it plans to take a pretax accounting charge of $4 billion in the current quarter to reflect the break-up fees that would be due to Deutsche Telekom if regulators block the deal.

The two companies said they had withdrawn applications to the Federal Communications Commission regarding the merger and intended to seek its approval again “as soon as practical.”

They took the step to consider “all options at the FCC and to focus their continuing efforts on obtaining antitrust clearance for the transaction from the Department of Justice,” which filed a lawsuit in August to stop the deal, AT&T said in a statement.

“Both companies are continuing to pursue the sale of T-Mobile USA to AT&T,” Deutsche Telekom stressed.

Both U.S. agencies worry that the deal would hamper competition and lead to higher prices for consumers.

Deutsche Telekom AG and AT&T Inc. made their move after the chairman of the FCC earlier this week came out against the merger.

Julius Genachowski made his position known in a document he circulated to fellow commissioners Tuesday.

He recommended sending AT&T’s proposed $39 billion takeover of T-Mobile to an administrative law judge for review and a hearing. That’s what the FCC does when it opposes a merger.

In a research note Thursday, Jefferies International analyst Ulrich Rathe said the withdrawal of the FCC application, as well as the opposition by the Justice Department, indicate that “the companies are already well into working out a new version of the deal.”

The analyst, who rates Deutsche Telekom “Buy,” said the charge confirms the break-up fee will be difficult for AT&T to avoid if the deal is not completed.

In Frankfurt, Deutsche Telekom shares closed down 0.6 percent Thursday at euro8.69 ($11.67), almost mirroring the 0.5 percent decline in the DAX index of blue-chip stocks.

The proposed deal, announced in March, would vault the combination of America’s No. 2 carrier AT&T and No. 4 T-Mobile into the top spot ahead of Verizon.

Dallas-based AT&T has about 101 million wireless subscribers. T-Mobile, the Bellevue, Washington-based subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG of Germany, has 34 million.

Verizon Wireless, a joint venture between Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC, has about 108 million, while Sprint Nextel Corp. has 53 million.

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Economist Mario Monti formed a new Italian government without a single politician Wednesday, drawing from the ranks of bankers, diplomats and business executives to make sure Italy escapes looming financial disaster.

The 68-year-old former European Union competition commissioner told reporters he will serve as Italy’s economy minister as well as premier for now as he seeks to implement “sacrifices” to heal the country’s finances and set the economy growing again.

Monti and his new cabinet ministers will be sworn later Wednesday, formally ending Silvio Berlusconi’s 3 1/2-year-old government as well as his 17-year-long run of political dominance.

Monti said he would lay out his emergency anti-crisis policies in the Senate on Thursday, ahead of a confidence vote. A second vote, in the lower Chamber of Deputies, will follow, likely on Friday. He stressed that Italy’s economic growth is a top priority.

Hopes for Italy’s new administration won it some respite in financial markets Wednesday. The yield on its ten-year bonds dropped 0.16 percentage point to 6.77 percent. In the last week, that borrowing rate had flirted over 7 percent _ the level that forced fellow eurozone members Greece, Ireland and Portugal to seek international bailouts.

Up until summer, Italy had mostly avoided the European debt turmoil despite having a jaw-dropping amount of debt: euro1.9 trillion ($2.6 trillion), or is nearly 120 percent of its GDP. But after frequent delays and backtracking on austerity measures, markets lost faith that any Berlusconi government could fix Italy’s economic issues.

Restoring confidence in Italy’s financial future is crucial because, as the third-largest economy in the eurozone, it is too big for Europe to rescue. A debt default by Italy would threaten the euro itself and shake the global economy.

Monti gave few hints about his political program Wednesday, sidestepping a question about whether the government would dip into citizens’ bank accounts as it did decades ago during another debt crisis.

“You may ask,” he replied, but went no further.

Explaining why his Cabinet contained no one from Italy’s fractious political parties, Monti said that his talks with party leaders led him to the conclusion “that the non-presence of politicians in the government would help it.”

His ministers include Corrado Passera, CEO of Italy’s second-largest bank, Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, to head Development and Infrastructure; Piero Gnudi, a longtime chairman of Enel utility company, as Tourism and Sport minister in a country heavily dependent on tourist revenues; and the current Italian ambassador to Washington, Giulio Terzi di Sant’Agata, to be foreign minister.

A historian of the Catholic church with close ties to the Vatican, Andrea Riccardi, was named minister of international and domestic cooperation, a choice that seemed to reward pro-Vatican lawmakers in Parliament.

A Monti government is “an historic and significant turn of events,” said Francesco Rutelli of the pro-Vatican centrists payday loans lenders.

Still, his choices raised some eyebrows.

“This government, ties to banks, to business, to the Vatican, to private universities _ to the usual names _ is the opposite of what this country needs,” said Paolo Ferrero, leader of Rifondazione Comunista, a tiny, far-left party.

Passera also sits on the board of directors of Milan’s Bocconi University, which forms Italy’s business elite. Monti is currently the head of the Bocconi.

But analysts gave Monti’s selections a top mark, insisting the Cabinet ministers were independent.

“I think the quality of the people is very high,” said Roberto D’Alimonte, a political science professor at Rome’s LUISS University. “All these people are very high-caliber, and highly respected, independent.”

Italy’s economy is hampered by high wage costs, low productivity, fat government payrolls, excessive taxes, choking bureaucracy and low numbers of college graduates. But Monti says Italy can beat the crisis if its largely polarized citizenry _ often bitterly divided over Berlusconi’s long tenure _ can pull together. He has also met with union leaders and business representatives.

“I hope that, governing well, we can make a contribution to the calming and the cohesion of the political forces,” Monti told reporters.

The head of Italy’s largest union confederation, Susanna Camusso, backed Monti but hoped he “won’t put his priority on pensions.”

Parliament on Saturday voted to raise the retirement age as part of an austerity package to 67 by 2026 and 70 by 2050, but critics say those reforms are meaningless because they are so far in the future. The new changes also call for the sale of state property and privatizing some services but contain no painful labor reforms. They also offer tax incentives to companies that hire young workers to fight Italy’s 25 percent unemployment rate for people ages 15 to 24.

The shift in power away from career politicians had caused bickering within Berlusconi’s conservative People of Freedom Party, which eventually endorsed Monti. But Berlusconi’s main coalition ally, the Northern League, has announced it will stay in the opposition during Monti’s government.

Rutelli predicted on Sky TG24 TV that Monti’s government would win the confidence votes and last until the end of the legislature in spring 2013, to the dismay of many of Berlusconi’s allies, who want elections in a few months.

“The economic crisis won’t be solved in a brief time,” he noted.

Not everyone was enthusiastic about an unelected, technocratic government.

“When governments of technocrats are needed, it means democracy and politics are considered useless, so it’s something negative that has to be for a limited period of time,” said skeptic Giuseppe Drago on the streets of Rome.

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A huge oil discovery by the Spanish company Repsol has sharply boosted Argentina’s potential to cash in on energy and could eventually attract an infusion of investment to exploit the shale oil.

Experts said Tuesday the find is very promising, but it is unclear how much time and investment may be needed to capitalize on the oil beneath the rocky, barren plains of Patagonia. The company said the discovery includes 927 million barrels of recoverable oil and natural gas, of which 741 million barrels is oil.

Shares in Repsol YPF SA soared a day after the find was announced, rising 6.3 percent by the close of trading in Madrid and climbing 6 percent in afternoon trading in New York.

Former Argentine Energy Minister Jorge Lapena said it’s a “spectacular announcement” but that the reserves have yet to be proven and that studies on economic feasibility and environmental impact still need to be carried out.

“There’s still a long path to go from resources to reserves, and then to put them into production,” Lapena told reporters. He said the find, if proven, appears to represent about 40 percent of Argentina’s reserves.

Though potentially a game-changer for Argentina, the find is small compared to Brazil’s recent deep-sea oil discoveries, which experts have estimated could represent as much as 55 billion barrels. Venezuela, South America’s largest oil exporter, has a whopping 296.5 billion barrels in proven crude reserves.

Still, for Argentina the find could lead to an eventual increase in oil output, and other areas remain to be explored.

“It must be proven first of all that they’re commercially exploitable reserves, that’s to say the economic feasibility,” Daniel Bosque, editor of the Argentina-based website Enernews.

Jason Schenker, an energy analyst and president of Austin, Texas-based Prestige Economics LLC, said such oil discoveries “will be critical to meet rising global oil demand.”

“A significant oil find at current price levels is very positive for firms that can verify their size and extract them efficiently,” Schenker said. “Now, the questions will be: How quickly can this oil be brought into production … and at what price?”

Those are questions that Repsol isn’t immediately ready to answer with specifics.

But Kristian Rix, a Repsol spokesman in Madrid, said that because 15 vertical wells have already been drilled in the area and are producing 5,000 barrels a day of shale oil, “the development of this is uncomplicated from our point of view.”

“It’s a producing region, so all the infrastructure is there already, so putting new wells on line is very fast,” Rix said in a telephone interview Tuesday.

He said that while it’s typical in the industry to have a lag time of five to seven years between exploration and production, “this is clearly not the case here, because we’re already producing from wells.” He said it’s too soon to comment on projected investment or how long it could take.

“We are still at a very intense exploration stage,” Rix said.

He said the oil would be extracted by hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” the technique that involves injecting water, sand and chemicals at high pressure to force out the fuel. It’s not yet clear which water sources would be used in that process.

The shale oil was discovered in the arid “Vaca Muerta,” or “Dead Cow,” basin of Neuquen province in northern Patagonia, a region of treeless plains dotted with dry brush where there are two nearby lakes.

Repsol YPF owns oil rights to 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles) of the basin, but like other oil companies, has just begun to search them. The discovery came while exploring an area of just 428 square kilometers (165 square miles) known as “Loma la Lata Norte.”

The company now plans to expand its drilling in a nearby area of about the same size that shows similar potential, Rix said.

Repsol YPF SA is based in Spain but operates in more than 30 countries around the world. As of Monday, Argentina is home to two-thirds of the 3 billion barrels of oil deposits that the company considers recoverable, up from half.

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Associated Press writers Ian James in Caracas, Venezuela, Bradley Brooks in Sao Paulo and Alan Clendenning in Madrid contributed to this report.

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The Coca-Cola Co. `s third-quarter profit rose 8 percent and beat Wall Street estimates as it sold more drinks worldwide and raised prices in North America, its largest market.

Coca-Cola has shown consistent growth for years, but like many of its peers, it recently has been struggling with rising costs for raw materials and Americans’ cautious spending habits during the down economy. But the company’s third-quarter results are the latest sign that despite the tough economic environment, some of world’s top brands, including its bigger rival PepsiCo, continue to prevail by tweaking their strategy.

Coca-Cola, which has more than 500 brands including Fanta, Sprite, Dasani and Minute Maid, has weathered the downturn by investing heavily in its business - increasing money for advertising, new products and plants. The company, like many of other companies, also has turned overseas for growth, particularly emerging markets like India and China. And in North America, it adjusted it is raising prices and offering smaller package sizes.

The results have paid off. Although Coca-Cola continues to feel the pressure of higher commodity costs, which sent its gross margin down to 60.2 percent from 65.4 percent during the third quarter, the company has been able to offset that with stronger sales growth.

“Over the past few months, we have all seen a downturn in global consumer confidence,” said Coca-Cola’s CEO Muhtar Kent. “At the same time, the last few months have reinforced our belief in the resilience of the global consumer.”

Coca-Cola, based in Atlanta, reported on Tuesday that sales volume grew 5 percent worldwide, driven largely by its Coca-Cola brand. The company’s gains were strongest in emerging markets, including a 19 percent increase in volume in India and a 7 percent increase in Latin America.

The company also had a gain in North America even though it raised prices about 2 percent to offset higher commodity and other costs there payday loans. Sales volume grew 5 percent in North America.

Net income rose to $2.22 billion, or 95 cents per share, in the three months ended Sept. 30. That’s up from $2.06 billion, or 88 cents per share, a year ago. Excluding one-time items, it earned $1.03 per share. Revenue rose 45 percent to $12.25 billion. The quarter beat analysts’ expectations of $1.02 per share on revenue of $12.05 billion, according to FactSet.

“We provide consumers with an affordable luxury as they enjoy moments of pleasure for pennies at a time, billions of times every day,” Kent said.

The company increased its share repurchase program. It now plans to buy back as much as $3 billion of its shares by the end of the year up from its prior goal of $2.5 billion.

On the news, Coca-Cola’s shares rose in morning trading but were nearly flat by midday, shares fell 5 cents to $66.95 _ a less than 1 percent drop.

Coke’s biggest competitor, PepsiCo Inc., also posted solid quarterly results that beat Wall Street estimates as it raised prices on its chips and sodas in the U.S. and grew its overseas business.

The maker of such products as Mt. Dew soda, Gatorade drink and Lay’s potato chips, said last week that it earned $2 billion, or $1.25 per share, for the quarter that ended Sept. 3, up from $1.92 billion, or $1.19 per share, in the period last year. Excluding charges related to its acquisition of Russian juice and dairy company Wimm-Bill-Dann and other one-time items, earnings were $1.31 per share. PepsiCo’s revenue climbed 13 percent to $17.58 billion.

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AP Business Reporter Mae Anderson contributed to this report from New York.

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China’s manufacturing remained stagnant in September due to sluggish demand both at home and abroad, according to a survey released Friday.

The monthly survey by HSBC released Friday also showed prices for materials and other manufacturing inputs rising at the fastest pace in four months _ suggesting sustained inflationary pressures.

The full survey followed a more pessimistic preliminary version published last week that prompted a sell-off in global markets as investors reacted to the possibility that China’s robust growth might falter, further dimming the world economic outlook.

HSBC said its purchasing managers index for September was steady at 49.9 on a 100-point scale on which numbers below 50 show activity contracting. The preliminary reading was 49.4.

The index, which showed its lowest quarterly average since early 2009, suggests a “negligible rate of deterioration in manufacturing sector operating conditions,” HSBC said.

Chinese industrial production has slowed following repeated interest rate hikes and other curbs as the government tries to tame growth and cool inflation that is hovering near a three-year high of over 6 percent.

The lack of change “shows some signs of stabilizing,” said HSBC economist Hongbin Qu. “This implies that although the lagged effects of credit tightening will continue to cool industrial activity in the months ahead, there is little need to worry about a sharp slowdown.”

The HSBC survey was released a day early due to an upcoming weeklong national holiday. A similar government-sponsored survey may be issued as usual on the first of the month.

The HSBC survey noted a negligible increase in manufacturing output and a marginal decline in new orders. New export business also fell at a negligible rate, it said.

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An early rally is fading on Wall Street as traders worry about Europe’s ability to contain its debt crisis.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested that the second Greek bailout package might have to be renegotiated. European leaders want banks to take bigger losses on Greek bonds. News reports indicate that France and the European Central Bank oppose the idea.

Technology companies rose after Amazon.com announced a new tablet computer and Microsoft said it was expanding a smartphone partnership with Samsung.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 65 points, or 0.6 percent, to 11,257 shortly before noon Wednesday. It had been up as many as 126 points earlier.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 2, or 0.2 percent, to 1,178. The Nasdaq composite fell 2, or 0.1 percent, to 2,545.

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Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has promised at a German industry forum that his country will live up to all the commitments it has made in the debt crisis.

A potentially disastrous debt default looms just weeks away for Greece. It needs to convince its rescue creditors, including Germany, that it is enforcing its reforms to access the loans needed to avoid bankruptcy in mid-October.

The prime minister said Tuesday: “I can guarantee that Greece will live up to all its commitments.” He promised that Greeks will “fight our way back to growth and prosperity.”

Ahead of a meeting Tuesday with Chancellor Angela Merkel, Papandreou called for Europe to unite and show it has a grip on the crisis.

He warned against heaping “only punishment and scorn” on his compatriots.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

BERLIN (AP) _ Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou says his debt-ridden country has “great potential” and can emerge from its deep economic and financial crisis easy to get unsecured personal loans.

As a potentially disastrous debt default looms just weeks away for Greece, Papandreou said Tuesday at a conference of the Federation of German Industries that “we are borrowing to repay.”

Papandreou will meet later Tuesday with Chancellor Angela Merkel. Greece’s international creditors are pressing Athens to implement fully austerity measures. Without the next batch of loans, Greece would default in mid-October.

The prime minister outlined Greece’s efforts to enforce reforms agreed in exchange for the loans.

He said that “so many people in Greece ask me, is all the pain worthwhile, can we make it? … my answer is, yes we can.”

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