Chinese Chip Stocks Jump as Apple Reportedly Tests CXMT Memory Chips for China Devices 
Cuba Power Outage Sparks Havana Protests as Fuel Crisis Deepens 
US Stock Futures Steady as Middle East Tensions and Fed Minutes Keep Investors Cautious 
Best Gold Stocks to Buy Now: AABB, GOLD, GDX 
Oil Prices Rise as Strait of Hormuz Risks Offset OPEC+ Supply Increase 
China Inflation Cools in June as Producer Prices Hit Four-Year High 
China 618 Smartphone Sales Drop 13% as Higher Prices Hurt Demand, Huawei Gains Market Share 
Oil Prices Rise as U.S.-Iran Conflict Fuels Strait of Hormuz Supply Fears 
US Back-to-School Spending Seen Falling as Families Focus on Essentials 
Industrial production in France unexpectedly fell during the month of October, defying expectations of a rise. It fell for the second month in a row as manufacturing output continued to decline and agricultural production fell.
France’s industrial production dropped 0.2 percent month-on-month in October, confounding expectations for an increase of 0.6 percent, data released by the statistical office Insee showed Friday. This was the second consecutive decrease in production. However, the pace of decline was slower than September's 1.4 percent decline.
Similarly, manufacturing output slid 0.6 percent in contrast to the expected 0.7 percent increase. Production had decreased 1.4 percent in September. The decline was largely caused by a 4.7 percent fall in machinery output and a 2.2 percent drop in transport equipment production.
On the other hand, construction output advanced 2.1 percent, reversing prior month's 1.7 percent decline. In the third quarter, industrial and manufacturing output grew 0.7 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively, the agency said.
Meanwhile, the EUR/USD traded at 1.06, down -1.06 percent, while at 9:00GMT, the FxWirePro's Hourly Euro Strength Index remained highly bearish at -125.24 (a reading above +75 indicates a bullish trend, while that below -75 a bearish trend). For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex
