Reuters

World stocks fell for a third day on Thursday and investors moved back into the Swiss franc, yen and gold as North Korea ratcheted up tensions with the United States with a threat to land a missile just short of the U.S. territory of Guam.

Gold hit the highest levels in two months on Thursday as the United States and North Korea exchanged more threats, prompting investors to buy bullion as a safe haven asset.

U.S. producer prices unexpectedly fell in July, recording their biggest drop in nearly a year and pointing to a further moderation in inflation that could delay a Federal Reserve interest rate increase.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, but the underlying trend remained consistent with a tightening labor market.

The euro slipped towards a two-week low against the dollar on Tuesday as swirling tensions between the United States and North Korea sapped broad demand and prompted investors to take profits after recent strong gains.

The Swiss franc eased versus the dollar on Thursday, but still held on to the bulk of hefty gains made the previous day as heightened tensions between the United States and North Korea sent investors looking for havens.

Gold prices edged lower earlyThursday, moving away from near two-month highs hit in the previous session as safe haven demand triggered by rising tensions in the Korean peninsula eased.

Asian stocks steadied and U.S. Treasury bond prices fell slightly on Thursday as the risk aversion triggered by the latest flare up of tensions between the United States and North Korea began to settle.

Oil futures rose in early Asian trading on Thursday, adding to gains from the previous session after official figures showed U.S. crude inventories fell more than expected.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand on Thursday said it still expected inflation to rise gradually as capacity pressures increase, underwhelming some expectations that it would strike a more dovish tone given recent soft economic data.