By Clara Ferreira-Marques LONDON (Reuters) - Miners Rio Tinto <RIO.AX> <RIO.L> and Glencore Xstrata <GLEN.L> have held early-stage talks to consider a plan that could combine thermal coal assets in Australia as they battle low prices and high costs, two sources familiar with the plan said.

Mining giant BHP Billiton affirmed full-year guidance for its major products Wednesday, reporting a "robust" quarter of output despite weather issues at its premier Australian businesses. The world's largest miner said it expected to meet full-year targets, with solid performance at its iron ore and coal sites in the face of cyclones at its Pilbara iron ore project and adverse weather hitting Queensland coal. "Full-year production guidance is retained for our major businesses following another quarter of robust operating performance," the miner said.

Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto will put parts of its struggling Australian thermal coal mine operations up for sale, hoping to raise US$3 billion, reports said on Thursday. The Australian Financial Review said the company has hired Deutsche Bank to examine the sale of its stakes in the Clermont and Blair Athol mines in Queensland state and its Coal and Allied operation in New South Wales. The Australian newspaper reported that Japanese power suppliers would be the most obvious buyers, with Rio keen to offload poorly performing assets.

By Alistair Smout LONDON (Reuters) - The FTSE 100 fell on Friday after a three-day rally, as investors backed away from riskier sectors and U.S. GDP figures came in below expectations. Material and energy stocks, which are sensitive to optimism over the global economic outlook, took 26 points off the FTSE 100, dragging the index into negative territory.