SAO PAULO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Brazil's Votorantim group and Singapore's Temasek Holdings teamed up to launch a $700 million fund to invest in Brazilian companies, they said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

The investment fund, called 23S Capital, will target long-term investments in high-growth sectors of the Brazilian economy, the companies said.

"Our investment mandate will focus on high-potential trends in Brazil and globally, with an emphasis on new business models and technology across various sectors of the Brazilian economy," said 23S Capital's chief executive Matheus Villares.

NEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq closed down on Tuesday after a dismal forecast from Micron Technology pulled chip makers and tech stocks lower as investors await U.S. inflation data that could lead the Federal Reserve to further tighten its efforts to curb inflation.

High inflation numbers on Wednesday, following last week's blowout jobs report, would likely stop the Fed from easing interest rates hikes anytime soon and halt the market's rally off mid-June lows.

Traders see a 68.5% chance of the Fed raising rates by 75 basis points in September, in what would be its third big hike in a row.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - U.S. worker productivity in the second quarter fell at its steepest pace on an annual basis since 1948 when the Labor Department began tracking it, while growth in unit labor costs accelerated, suggesting strong wage pressures will continue to help keep inflation elevated.

Nonfarm productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, fell at a 2.5% pace from a year ago, the department said on Tuesday. It also declined sharply in the second quarter at a 4.6% annualized rate, after having declined by an upwardly revised 7.4% in the first three months of the year.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected productivity would decline at a 4.7% rate in the April-June period.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - XP Inc (XP.O) posted a marginal jump in second-quarter adjusted profit as the Brazilian broker gained from a surge in assets under custody that offset a slowdown in inflows due to higher interest rates.

Last week, Brazil's central bank raised its key interest rate by half a percentage point to battle the impacts of fuel and food shocks that have kept consumer prices rising above 10% a year even as growth remains subdued.

The country's largest brokerage said its net inflows of 43 billion reais ($8.36 billion) were 43% lower from a year ago, while the total purchase value on XP's credit card rose 161% to 5.5 billion reais.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) is lobbying the Ontario government as part of an effort to set up an "advanced manufacturing facility" in Canada, a filing by the electric-vehicle maker to the province's Office of the Integrity Commissioner showed.

The company's Canadian unit is working with the government to "identify opportunities for industrial facility permitting reforms", the amended filing from July 18 said.

Tesla as well as the office of Ontario's minister for economic development, job creation and trade did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

SAO PAULO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Latin American financial start-up Nubank said on Tuesday that Brazilian pop singer Anitta has left its board of directors, some 14 months after joining it, and will now become a global brand ambassador for the digital bank.

The fintech, backed by investors such as Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), said that the singer had requested to leave the board due to her schedule.

The company said that it has appointed Thuan Pham, former chief technology officer of Uber (UBER.N) and current CTO of South Korea's Coupang , to succeed her.

Born in a Rio de Janeiro slum, Anitta has become one of Brazil's best known pop stars. In March she became the first Brazilian to top Spotify's (SPOT.N) daily global chart with her song "Envolver."

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Ralph Lauren Corp (RL.N) and Michael Kors-owner Capri Holdings (CPRI.N) blew past earnings estimates, underscoring an unwavering demand for luxury apparel and handbags from wealthy consumers who remain largely unscathed by red-hot inflation.

Surging prices have had little impact on middle- and high-income households who have been happily splurging on designer labels, using what they saved during the pandemic when everything from foreign holidays to eating out came to a halt.

"High-income consumers are shopping in a way that is different from other times of inflation," Jane Hali & Associates analyst Jessica Ramirez said.

NEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq closed down on Tuesday after a dismal forecast from Micron Technology pulled chip makers and tech stocks lower as investors await U.S. inflation data that could lead the Federal Reserve to further tighten its efforts to curb inflation.

High inflation numbers on Wednesday, following last week's blowout jobs report, would likely stop the Fed from easing interest rates hikes anytime soon and halt the market's rally off mid-June lows.

Traders see a 68.5% chance of the Fed raising rates by 75 basis points in September, in what would be its third big hike in a row.

SAO PAULO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Brazil's Votorantim group and Singapore's Temasek Holdings teamed up to launch a $700 million fund to invest in Brazilian companies, they said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

The investment fund, called 23S Capital, will target long-term investments in high-growth sectors of the Brazilian economy, the companies said.

"Our investment mandate will focus on high-potential trends in Brazil and globally, with an emphasis on new business models and technology across various sectors of the Brazilian economy," said 23S Capital's chief executive Matheus Villares.

MEXICO CITY, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Mexican leasing firm Unifin (UNIFINA.MX) will miss principal and interest payments on its debt because of limited sources of financing, the company said in a filing to Mexico's main stock exchange.

The decision is effective immediately "and through the period necessary to negotiate definitive agreements with (Unifin's) shareholders in relation to a strategic restructuring," it said in the filing late on Monday.

Unifin shares fell 85% on Tuesday morning to an historic low.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - MDU Resources Group Inc (MDU.N) is confident in its current strategy, the company said on Tuesday, after activist investor Corvex Management unveiled a nearly 5% stake in the U.S. utility.

Corvex, which is controlled by Keith Meister, said in a regulatory filing late on Monday it bought shares in MDU as it believes the stock is undervalued. Corvex also wants to discuss strategic options with the board and management, and other measures to improve the company's valuation.

Last week, Bismarck, North Dakota-based MDU said it would separate its construction materials unit - Knife River Corporation - into a separate public company, with shares in the new entity to be distributed to MDU shareholders.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - U.S. worker productivity in the second quarter fell at its steepest pace on an annual basis since 1948 when the Labor Department began tracking it, while growth in unit labor costs accelerated, suggesting strong wage pressures will continue to help keep inflation elevated.

Nonfarm productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, fell at a 2.5% pace from a year ago, the department said on Tuesday. It also declined sharply in the second quarter at a 4.6% annualized rate, after having declined by an upwardly revised 7.4% in the first three months of the year.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected productivity would decline at a 4.7% rate in the April-June period.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - XP Inc (XP.O) posted a marginal jump in second-quarter adjusted profit as the Brazilian broker gained from a surge in assets under custody that offset a slowdown in inflows due to higher interest rates.

Last week, Brazil's central bank raised its key interest rate by half a percentage point to battle the impacts of fuel and food shocks that have kept consumer prices rising above 10% a year even as growth remains subdued.

The country's largest brokerage said its net inflows of 43 billion reais ($8.36 billion) were 43% lower from a year ago, while the total purchase value on XP's credit card rose 161% to 5.5 billion reais.

SAO PAULO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Latin American financial start-up Nubank said on Tuesday that Brazilian pop singer Anitta has left its board of directors, some 14 months after joining it, and will now become a global brand ambassador for the digital bank.

The fintech, backed by investors such as Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), said that the singer had requested to leave the board due to her schedule.

The company said that it has appointed Thuan Pham, former chief technology officer of Uber (UBER.N) and current CTO of South Korea's Coupang , to succeed her.

Born in a Rio de Janeiro slum, Anitta has become one of Brazil's best known pop stars. In March she became the first Brazilian to top Spotify's (SPOT.N) daily global chart with her song "Envolver."

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) has hired former Goldman Sachs executive Rod Colburn to their Wealth Management Americas business, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

Colburn joins the European bank as managing director and senior relationship manager after 14 years at Goldman Sachs. He will focus on lending solutions for ultra-high net worth clients and report to Anthony Valvo, market head for New York and South East.

At his previous role at the Wall Street bank, he was instrumental in building out its private bank lending business, where he originated more than $10 billion of loan transactions.

Rod has previously held similar roles at US Trust and Citi Private Bank and has more than three decades of experience working with ultra-high net worth clients.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Insurer American International Group Inc (AIG.N) said on Tuesday that September would be the next window for the delayed initial public offering (IPO) of its life and retirement unit.

AIG, one of the world's biggest commercial insurers, on Monday blamed market volatility for the delay, becoming the latest company to rethink IPO plans in the face of runaway inflation, rising interest rates and the Russia-Ukraine war.

The unit filed for its offering in March and AIG, which had first announced the move in 2020, planned to complete the listing by the end of June, subject to market conditions.

LONDON, Aug 9 (Reuters) - U.S. manufacturing production probably peaked during the second quarter, though the data are noisy and conflicting, and a turning point may not become obvious until September or October.

U.S. manufacturing output in June was down by 0.4% compared with March though it was still up by 3.6% compared with the same month a year earlier, estimates prepared by the Federal Reserve Board found.

Three-month output growth was the weakest since early 2021, and confirms slackening momentum evident in other data on output, orders and jobs (“Industrial production and capacity utilisation”, Federal Reserve, July 15).

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Ralph Lauren Corp (RL.N) and Michael Kors-owner Capri Holdings (CPRI.N) blew past earnings estimates, underscoring an unwavering demand for luxury apparel and handbags from wealthy consumers who remain largely unscathed by red-hot inflation.

Surging prices have had little impact on middle- and high-income households who have been happily splurging on designer labels, using what they saved during the pandemic when everything from foreign holidays to eating out came to a halt.

"High-income consumers are shopping in a way that is different from other times of inflation," Jane Hali & Associates analyst Jessica Ramirez said.

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Several high-flying startups are being brought down to earth, as a recent carnage in global equity markets and lackluster demand for new listings force companies to raise funds at a substantial discount to their sky-high valuations.

Easy money from venture capital dealmaking is fast evaporating in an inflation-induced high interest-rate environment as many private investors take a hard look at funding startups, many of which could be years away from turning a profit.

Already high-profile companies such as payments firm Stripe, Swedish buy-now-pay-later firm Klarna and delivery startup Instacart have seen their valuations get knocked down by a peg or two this year.