US inflation eased more than expected in June, with headline CPI slowing to 3.5% year on year and core CPI to 2.6%. After the release, the US dollar index (DXY) fell 0.3%, USDJPY closed 0.1% lower and USDSGD also softened. The cooling print reduced near-term expectations for Federal Reserve rate hikes and pushed short-dated US Treasury yields lower, pressuring the dollar and rippling across major Asian currency pairs.

Samsung reported quarterly operating profit surging 19-fold to $58 billion, beating analyst expectations. The report said demand from generative AI and agentic AI systems has accelerated memory consumption, helping drive sharp price increases in DRAM and NAND flash. It added that the earnings strength supports the durability of the trend and is seen as a direct positive for Samsung shares and the Memory ETF that tracks DRAM and NAND prices.

Philippines inflation is still running above 6% year on year, pressured by El Nino risks and food prices, keeping the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas hawkish. The article forecasts two additional BSP rate hikes, taking the policy rate to 5.25% by the end of 2026. Elsewhere, USD/JPY is fluctuating around 162 as markets watch whether Japanese authorities intervene to curb excessive yen weakness. The piece also flags upcoming U.S. macro releases including ISM services, the FOMC minutes and CPI, without reporting results.