Gold Prices Steady as Hormuz Tensions Fuel Fed Rate Concerns 
US Dollar Gains as Iran Tensions, Fed Rate Hike Bets Rise 
Dollar Holds Near Six-Week Low as Yen Loses Momentum Ahead of U.S. Jobs Data 
Asian Stocks Slide as Semiconductor Selloff Weighs on South Korea and Japan 
Australia Trade Surplus Returns in June as Iron Ore, Coal and LNG Exports Surge 
Asian Stocks Cautious Ahead of US Jobs Data as Oil Rises 
China Exports Beat July Forecasts as AI Demand Fuels High-Tech Trade 
Gold Prices Surge 7% as Dollar Falls, Fed Rate Hike Bets Ease 
US Stock Futures Hold Steady as Iran Hormuz Deal and Earnings Shape Market Sentiment 
China Trade Surplus Beats Forecasts in July as Exports Stay Strong 
Brazil Cuts Selic Rate to 14% as Inflation Eases but Risks Persist 
Oil Prices Surge as Iran Hormuz Restrictions Renew Supply Fears 
Asian Currencies Hold Steady as US Dollar Nears Seven-Week Low Ahead of Key Jobs Data 
Gold Price Hits Seven-Week High as Fed Rate Hike Bets Fade and Hormuz Deal Hopes Grow 
Canada, US Hold Constructive Trade Talks as Tariff Negotiations Continue 
US Job Growth Seen Picking Up in July 
Oil Prices Slip as Hormuz Shipping Progress and Rising U.S. Crude Stocks Weigh on Market 
South Korea's industrial output rose 0.7 percent on-month November due to improving exports, but consumption plunged for the second straight month amid a coronavirus resurgence.
However, the industrial output in November was a 0.6 percent on-year drop.
The mining, manufacturing, gas, and electricity industries gained a 0.3 percent production increase on-month in November, while the chips and display panels production also improved.
But retail sales dropped 0.9 percent from a month earlier, compared with a 1 percent on-month decline in October, the data showed. From a year earlier, they fell 1.5 percent, marking the second straight month of an on-year decline.
Sales of semidurable goods, such as clothes, plummeted 6.9 percent, while those of durable goods, such as cars, dipped 0.9 percent.
Meanwhile, sales of nondurable goods and food jumped 1.3 percent on-month.
Statistics Korea said the face-to-face service and retail sales sector may shrink in December due to increasing spiking COVID-19 cases.
On Dec. 8, the country tightened its virus curbs to Level 2.5 in the Seoul metropolitan area, where half of its 51.6 million population lived. It was Level 2 for the rest of the country.
