Aug 10 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer prices were unchanged in July due to a sharp drop in the cost of gasoline, delivering the first notable sign of relief for weary Americans who have watched inflation climb over the past two years.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) was flat last month after advancing 1.3% in June, the Labor Department said on Wednesday in a closely watched report that nevertheless showed underlying inflation pressures remain elevated as the Federal Reserve mulls whether to embrace another super-sized interest rate hike in September. read more

The reading was the largest month-on-month deceleration of price increases since 1973 and followed on the heels of a roughly 20% drop in the cost of gasoline since mid-June. Prices at the pump spiked in the first half of this year due to the war in Ukraine, hitting a record-high average of more than $5 per gallon on June 14, according to motorist advocacy group AAA. read more

WASHINGTON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Three former JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) employees were acquitted of racketeering and conspiracy charges in a landmark futures manipulation trial on Wednesday, although two were found guilty on other charges including fraud, a Department of Justice spokesperson said.

The case against the bank's former global precious metals desk head Michael Nowak, precious metals trader Gregg Smith and salesperson Jeffrey Ruffo is seen as the Justice Department's most aggressive to date targeting a manipulative futures trading tactic known as spoofing.

Nowak was convicted on 13 other charges including fraud, spoofing and attempted market manipulation, and Smith was convicted on 11 charges. Ruffo, who was only charged with racketeering and conspiracy, was acquitted of both. All three men had pleaded not guilty.

WASHINGTON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - As weary U.S. military planners wrapped up the evacuation and pullout from Afghanistan one year ago, officials across the government steeled themselves for intense public scrutiny into how America's longest war ended in shambles with the Taliban retaking power.

But as the United States marks the first anniversary of the withdrawal this month, some U.S. officials and experts say President Joe Biden's administration has moved on without properly assessing lessons from the 20-year war and the Taliban victory.

Nor has there been public accountability for the chaotic evacuation operation that saw 13 U.S. service members killed at Kabul's airport and hundreds of U.S. citizens and tens of thousands of Afghans left behind, they said.

Aug 10 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse's (CSGN.S) top shareholder Harris Associates on Wednesday disclosed a stake of more than 10% in the Swiss bank.

The investment firm said in a filing that it owned 266 million shares, or a 10.1% stake, in the company as of end-July.

Harris Associates previously held a stake of around 5.2%, according to Credit Suisse's website. The bank's second-largest shareholder is Qatar Holding - a unit of the Qatari sovereign wealth fund - with a stake of about 5% as of Nov. 17. (https://bit.ly/3PfMWmA)

SEOUL, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Using a plastic bowl, Ha In-sik bailed water out of his lower ground apartment in the low-income housing district of Sillim in southwestern Seoul on Wednesday, where flooding caused by torrential rain forced his family to sleep at a nearby park.

The 50-year-old man, along with his wife and daughter had collected home appliances, furniture, books and even cutlery, and put them outside to see what was salvageable.

The scene bore uncomfortable similarities with the sewage-flooded semi-basement flat depicted in the 2020 Oscar-winning South Korean film "Parasite," that was a tale of growing social disparity in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

BEIJING/HONG KONG, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Asian shares tracked Wall Street higher on Thursday after a softer-than-expected U.S. inflation report encouraged bets of less aggressive rate hikes from the Federal Reserve, while the dollar remained bruised after its biggest plunge in five months.

U.S. consumer prices were unchanged in July compared with June, when they rose a monthly 1.3%. The July result was lower than expectations due to a sharp drop in the cost of petrol, causing markets to reposition on hopes that inflation was peaking. read more

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) rose 1.0% in early Asia trade, driven by a 1.2% jump in resources-heavy Australia (.AXJO), a 1.4% gain in South Korea (.KS11) and a 1.2% advance in Hong Kong (.HSI).

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 10 (Reuters) - China delayed on Wednesday a proposal by the United States and India to sanction at the U.N. Security Council a top commander in the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant group, diplomats said.

India and the United States wanted Abdul Rauf Azhar to be subjected to a global travel ban and asset freeze. Such a move has to be agreed by all 15 members of a Security Council sanctions committee.

"We placed a hold because we need more time to study the case. Placing holds is provided for by the Committee guidelines, and there have been quite a number of similar holds by Committee members on listing requests," a spokesperson for China's mission to the United Nations told Reuters.

HONG KONG, Aug 11 (Reuters) - The euro and Japanese yen were sitting pretty on Thursday morning after U.S. inflation data overnight came in less hot than feared and sent the dollar tumbling.

U.S. consumer prices were unchanged in July compared with June, when prices rose a monthly 1.3%. The July result was lower than expectations due to a sharp drop in the cost of petrol, causing markets to reposition on hopes that inflation was peaking. read more

If price rises have reached their zenith, investors expect the U.S. Federal Reserve will not have to maintain its eye-wateringly steep pace of interest rate hikes, which had been supporting the dollar.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., Aug 10 (Reuters) - Muslims in New Mexico interviewed on Wednesday said they felt shock and shame at the arrest of a Muslim immigrant from Afghanistan in connection with the murders of four Muslim men.

Police on Tuesday said they detained 51-year-old Muhammad Syed. A motive for the killings remains unclear, but police said he may have acted on personal grudges, possibly with intra-Muslim sectarian overtones.

Syed denied being involved with any of the four killings when questioned by police, according to the New York Times.

NEW YORK, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Harvey Weinstein and the U.S. business of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (STLA.MI) agreed to end competing lawsuits over a 2019 crash in which the now-imprisoned former Hollywood movie producer flipped a Jeep Wrangler while trying to avoid a deer.

According to a joint stipulation filed on Wednesday night in federal court in Manhattan and subject to a judge's approval, Weinstein and Chrysler will dismiss all claims against each other with prejudice, meaning they cannot be brought again.

A spokesman for Weinstein declined to comment. Lawyers for Chrysler did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

WELLINGTON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - New Zealand house prices fell in July with the median price recording its first annual fall since 2011, the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) said on Thursday.

The seasonally adjusted median nationwide house value in July fell 2.8% compared with the previous month and was down 1.6% year-on-year, according to REINZ. The unadjusted median house price was down 1.8% on year.

"While the median property price is showing an annual decrease, affordability remains an obstacle for many — which is now being driven by rising interest rates, inflation and tighter lending criteria," said Jen Baird, chief executive at REINZ, in a new release.

WASHINGTON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told the Internal Revenue Service commissioner on Wednesday that if the Inflation Reduction Act becomes law additional IRS resources should not be used to increase audit rates on taxpayers making under $400,000 a year.

"This means that, contrary to the misinformation from opponents of this legislation, small business or households earning $400,000 per year or less will not see an increase in the chances that they are audited," Yellen said in a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig.

SEOUL, Aug 11 (Reuters) - North Korea's Kim Jong Un declared victory in the battle against COVID-19 on Thursday, with the leader's sister revealing he had suffered from fever and vowing "deadly retaliation" against South Korea which it blames for causing the outbreak.

Kim ordered a lifting of maximum anti-epidemic measures imposed in May, adding that North Korea must maintain a "steel-strong anti-epidemic barrier and intensifying the anti-epidemic work until the end of the global health crisis," according to a report by state news agency KCNA.

North Korea has never confirmed how many people caught COVID-19, apparently lacking testing supplies. It had instead reported daily numbers of fever patients, which totalled some 4.77 million, but has registered no new such cases since July 29.

Aug 10 (Reuters) - A Wyoming judge on Wednesday blocked the state's near-total ban on abortion from taking effect while doctors, a clinic operator and others sue to invalidate the law.

Judge Melissa Owens of the District Court of Teton County said the lawsuit raised important questions about the ban, which has only narrow exceptions for rape, incest and medical emergencies, under Wyoming's constitution.

Owen said irreparable harm could occur if the ban were enforced before those questions are answered. She also said she believes the plaintiffs would win on the merits of their case, though a final decision will likely come from the state's Supreme Court, whose five members were all appointed by Republican governors.

SEOUL, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) unveiled its latest high-end foldable smartphones on Wednesday, keeping prices at the same level as last year's in a bid to cement its leadership in an expanding niche market.

The smartphone maker priced its clamshell Galaxy Z Flip4 at $999.99, and the 5G-enabled top-line Galaxy Z Fold4 with a 7.6-inch main screen to start at $1,799.99 in the United States, the same as the launch prices of last year's models.

"We've successfully transformed this category from a radical project to a mainstream device lineup enjoyed by millions worldwide," said TM Roh, president and head of mobile experience at Samsung Electronics.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., Aug 10 (Reuters) - Muslims in New Mexico interviewed on Wednesday said they felt shock and shame at the arrest of a Muslim immigrant from Afghanistan in connection with the murders of four Muslim men.

Police on Tuesday said they detained 51-year-old Muhammad Syed. A motive for the killings remains unclear, but police said he may have acted on personal grudges, possibly with intra-Muslim sectarian overtones.

Syed denied being involved with any of the four killings when questioned by police, according to the New York Times.

WASHINGTON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - China's war games around Taiwan have led Biden administration officials to recalibrate their thinking on whether to scrap some tariffs or potentially impose others on Beijing, setting those options aside for now, according to sources familiar with the deliberations.

President Joe Biden's team has been wrestling for months with various ways to ease the costs of duties imposed on Chinese imports during predecessor Donald Trump's tenure, as it tries to tamp down skyrocketing inflation.

It has considered a combination of eliminating some tariffs, launching a new "Section 301" investigation into potential areas for additional tariffs, and expanding a list of tariff exclusions to aid U.S. companies that can only get certain supplies from China.

SINGAPORE, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Thursday as traders anticipated more supply of crude entering the market coupled with weaker demand.

Brent crude futures fell by 53 cents, or 0.5%, to $96.87 a barrel by 0005 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 61 cents, or 0.7%, to $91.32.

U.S. crude oil stocks rose by 5.5 million barrels in the most recent week, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said, more than the expected increase of 73,000 barrels.

LOS ANGELES, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) edged past Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) with a total of 221 million streaming customers and announced it will increase prices for customers who want to watch Disney+ or Hulu without commercials.

The media giant will raise the monthly cost of Disney+ without advertising by 38% to $10.99 in December, when it begins to offer a new option that includes ads for the current price.

Shares of Disney rose 6.9% in after-hours trading to $120.15 on Wednesday.

SEOUL, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) unveiled its latest high-end foldable smartphones on Wednesday, keeping prices at the same level as last year's in a bid to cement its leadership in an expanding niche market.

The smartphone maker priced its clamshell Galaxy Z Flip4 at $999.99, and the 5G-enabled top-line Galaxy Z Fold4 with a 7.6-inch main screen to start at $1,799.99 in the United States, the same as the launch prices of last year's models.

"We've successfully transformed this category from a radical project to a mainstream device lineup enjoyed by millions worldwide," said TM Roh, president and head of mobile experience at Samsung Electronics.

LONDON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Expectations for activity in Britain's housing market have dried up quickly thanks to a worsening economic outlook and rising interest rates, an industry survey showed on Thursday.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said its gauge of sales expectations for the coming 12 months slid to -36% in July from June's -21%, the lowest reading since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

The survey was conducted before the Bank of England last week announced its biggest rate hike since 1995. read more