Samsung Electronics said memory-chip demand will continue to expand in Q4.

UMC says mature-node demand is strong and wafer capacity utilization has topped 90%; the foundry will continue raising prices. CEO Wang Shi told an analyst meeting on the 28th UMC expects blended ASP to rise about 10% YoY in 2027. Management is accelerating AI initiatives and targets AI-related revenue to reach 25% of sales within three years. Silicon photonics and advanced packaging are cited as new growth drivers. Wang said both 8-inch and 12-inch businesses have clear pricing upside, expects 2027 to be an ASP inflection point with positive ASP momentum from Q1 next year, and said annual price negotiations are in their late stage with management confident on the outlook.

Analysis of US Treasury and State Department data shows countries and territories close to the United States net purchased $174.3bn of US Treasuries (excluding short-term Treasury bills) in the first eight months of 2026, the weakest same-period reading since 2021 and down more than 60% YoY. The decline is concentrated in Asia: Japan, the largest overseas holder, net bought just $389m through August, a 99% YoY drop; South Korea was a net seller of $23.8bn, the largest reduction for the period since records began in 1977. The statistics do not separate official from private flows, and governments have not signaled coordinated divestment. Factors cited include local currency weakness, rising domestic yields, stronger equity appeal and concerns about US policy uncertainty. State Street senior fixed-income strategist Masahiko Loo said: “The Treasury market hasn’t lost overseas buyers, it has lost passive, automatic allocators. Increasing US policy unpredictability undermines the logic of structurally overweighting Treasuries and habitually recycling surplus funds into them.”