Aug 14 — SMIC co-CEO Zhao Haijun at the Q2 results meeting said Q3 shipments are expected to rise and pricing to remain stable. Revenue guidance +2–4% QoQ; gross margin guidance 26–28%, which he said should still increase QoQ after absorbing higher Q3 depreciation from new capacity and summer peak power. Utilization including new capacity is expected to remain around 95%, effectively diluting unit fixed costs.

The yen hovered near the key 160-per-dollar threshold on Thursday, trading around 159.36 per USD. Sources said Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government supports rate hikes and that the next Bank of Japan policy move could come in September or October; the BOJ and government are reportedly aligned on near-term tightening amid concerns a weak yen is lifting prices and to reinforce recent US-Japan currency interventions. Investors said the disclosures had little market impact, as markets have largely priced in BOJ hikes. A wide US-Japan rate gap and Japan's heavy public debt continue to weigh on the currency.

An 83% majority of 69 economists polled expect the ECB to raise the deposit facility rate by 25bps to 2.50% in September; 80% expect the rate to remain at 2.50% through year‑end and 63% expect it to stay at or above 2.50% until Q3 2027. The share anticipating a September hike rose to 83% from 72% before July’s meeting and 65% in June, reinforcing consensus that June’s increase could be followed by another move. Nomura says sustained higher oil prices raise the risk of second‑round inflation effects; while the ECB can wait to see those effects it can also act preemptively, and a single small hike would look like a mere tweak—making a follow‑up move likely. Given June’s obvious choice, Nomura judges another rate rise highly likely.