South Korea's updated official accounts showed all-industry production unchanged in July from June, although a separate Statistics Korea account reported a 0.4% seasonally adjusted decline after a 0.5% increase in June. Annual growth slowed to 3.6% from a revised 5.8% in June. Mining and manufacturing edged up 0.2%, supported by a 20.7% increase in electronic components, while automobile production fell 4.5% and semiconductor output rose 0.5% in the newer account. Services contracted 1.3%, reversing a 0.7% June increase, retail sales declined 2.4% and facility investment climbed 7.5%. Separate Japanese data showed industrial production rising 0.1% month on month and 4.1% year on year in July, while broader retail sales increased 2.4% month on month and 4.0% year on year. The Japanese rebound was the first monthly retail gain in three months and the strongest since February, but economists continued to flag fragile momentum, a slightly negative three-month average and the need for firmer wage growth as the Bank of Japan assesses policy.