Gold inches lower as N.Korea tensions ease
BENGALURU, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Gold edged lower early on Tuesday, weighed down by a steady U.S. dollar and firmer Asian stocks as geopolitical tensions between the United States and North Korea appeared to ease. FUNDAMENTALS * Spot gold had fallen 0.2 percent to $1,279.01 per ounce by 0013 GMT. * U.S. gold futures for December delivery fell 0.4 percent to $1,285.00 per ounce. * North Korea's leader received a report from his army on its plans to fire missiles towards Guam and said he will watch the actions of the United States for a while longer before making a decision, the North's official news agency said on Tuesday. * Defense Secretary Jim Mattis warned on Monday that the U.S. military would be prepared to intercept a missile fired by North Korea if it was headed to Guam. * Stocks around the world rose along with U.S. Treasury bond yields and the U.S. dollar on Monday as investors regained some appetite for riskier assets as the United States and North Korea appeared to take a break from their war of words. * Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Monday called for military exercises after U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of a possible armed intervention in the country, but Maduro insisted he still wanted to hold talks with the U.S. leader. * One of the Federal Reserve's most influential members expects to raise interest rates once more this year, and to soon begin shedding some of the Fed's bond holdings, according to comments on Monday that pushed back on doubts in financial markets. * Gold's rally in recent weeks may be its first boosted by Twitter, but for the gains to sustain it will likely take more than just the ramping up of global geopolitical tensions amid bellicose tweets from President Trump. * Indian traders are likely to import 25 tonnes of gold from South Korea in July and August, taking advantage of a recent tax change that allows importers to ship in gold without paying a 10 percent customs duty, industry officials told Reuters. * Holdings at the SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.53 percent to 791.01 tonnes on Monday from 786.87 tonnes on Friday. DATA AHEAD (GMT) 0600 Germany GDP Flash Q2 0830 Britain Consumer prices July 0830 Britain Producer prices July 1230 U.S. New York Fed manufacturing July 1230 U.S. Import prices July 1230 U.S. Export prices July 1230 U.S. Retail sales July 1400 U.S. Business inventories June 1400 U.S. NAHB housing market index Aug (Reporting by Nithin Prasad in Bengaluru; Editing by Joseph Radford)