The Japanese yen rose in Asian markets on Monday against a basket of major and minor currencies, extending its rebound for a second straight day from an eight-week low against the US dollar, supported by buying activity at lower levels and the dollar’s defensive stance amid risks of a US government shutdown.

A split within the Bank of Japan’s board has increased pressure on dovish Governor Kazuo Ueda to move faster on normalizing monetary policy, boosting the likelihood of a Japanese rate hike in October.

Price Overview

• USD/JPY fell 0.4% to ¥148.88, from today’s opening at ¥149.47, after touching a high of ¥149.51.

• The yen ended Friday up 0.2% against the dollar, its first gain in three sessions, after earlier hitting an eight-week low at ¥149.96.

• The yen lost more than 1% against the dollar last week, marking a fifth straight weekly decline and its biggest weekly loss since early July, weighed down by political uncertainty in the world’s fourth-largest economy.

US Dollar

The dollar index fell 0.25% on Monday, extending losses for a second session and pulling back from a three-week high of 98.61 points, reflecting continued weakness of the US currency against major peers.

Beyond profit-taking, the dollar’s retreat is tied to the looming risk of a US government shutdown if Congress fails to pass a funding bill before the fiscal year ends on Tuesday. Without approval, parts of the government will close on Wednesday, the first day of fiscal year 2026.

Japanese Interest Rates

• The Bank of Japan kept interest rates unchanged at 0.5% earlier this month, in line with market expectations.

• However, dissenting calls from two board members for a 25-basis-point hike surprised markets and were seen as a signal that the BoJ is less concerned about economic headwinds than previously thought.

• The dissenters aimed to push Governor Kazuo Ueda to accelerate the pace of rate increases, as tightening is seen as inevitable sooner or later.

• Markets currently estimate about a 50% chance of a 25-basis-point rate hike in October.

• A Reuters poll showed a majority of economists expect another 25-basis-point increase in Japanese interest rates by year-end.

• To reprice those expectations, investors are awaiting further data on inflation, unemployment, and wages in Japan.

Gold prices rose on Friday as the dollar weakened against most major currencies and markets assessed US economic data.

According to data released today, the core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index — which excludes food and energy — held steady at 2.9% year-on-year in August, below expectations of a 3% increase.

A University of Michigan survey released Friday showed that US consumer sentiment fell 5.3% to 55.1 in the revised September reading, remaining 21.6% lower than the same month in 2024.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman reiterated on Friday the need to accelerate rate cuts, citing rising risks to labor market stability.

Separately, US President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on branded and patented drugs starting October 1, unless manufacturers build factories in the United States.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index fell 0.4% to 98.1 by 20:04 GMT, after reaching a high of 98.5 and a low of 98.1.

In trading, spot gold rose 1% to $3,805 an ounce by 20:04 GMT, with the precious metal gaining 2.8% for the week.

Imagine bringing back vast quantities of platinum, gold, and rare metals — enough to fund every American’s wildest dreams, or perhaps collapse the global economy overnight. This is the high-stakes gamble NASA and a wave of innovative US startups are taking as they chase the untapped riches of asteroids.

As NASA’s Psyche probe speeds toward its 2029 rendezvous with the metallic asteroid of the same name, US startups are racing to turn celestial rocks into a viable business — a venture that could reshape global supply chains for critical minerals. Yet the risks are enormous, including market disruptions reminiscent of historic commodity boom-and-bust cycles.

Launched in October 2023 aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, the Psyche probe is on track to enter orbit around asteroid 16 Psyche by late July 2029, where it will spend two years mapping its composition.

The mission, led by Arizona State University’s Lindy Elkins-Tanton, seeks to study what scientists believe is the exposed core of an ancient protoplanet, rich in iron, nickel, and other metals potentially worth “quadrillions of dollars” — or “15 zeros,” as Elkins-Tanton described in a recent Space interview.

The economic allure is clear: the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter holds enormous deposits of platinum for catalysts, cobalt for batteries, iron for steelmaking, and gold for electronics. NASA estimates that mining just 10 such asteroids could generate the equivalent of $100 million for every person on Earth — a total of $1.5 trillion.

But commercial viability hinges on carefully managed extraction to avoid flooding markets. Oversupplying rare metals — critical for iPhones, EVs, and defense technology — could send prices crashing, just as oil gluts have in the past, crippling terrestrial miners and suppliers.

These risks do not deter companies like California-based TransAstra, which is developing optical mining technology using concentrated solar power to process water-rich asteroids. The technique involves wrapping targets in polyamide sacks and vaporizing volatile materials to extract pure metals. CEO Joel Sercel likens it to “using the sun as a welding torch,” as reported by Space.

The company narrowly missed a live test last fall with the small near-Earth asteroid 2024 PT5, which orbited nearby for nearly two months. Such opportunities may arise annually or once a decade, according to Rob Hoyt, former co-founder of Tethers Unlimited. Inspired by NASA consulting and science fiction writer R. L. Forward, that company once proposed using nets and tethers to capture asteroids and tow them into Earth orbit for automated dismantling, according to Space.

This new generation of startups is the first to seriously attempt space mining.

Earlier efforts, like Planetary Resources — founded in 2012 with backing from Hollywood director James Cameron, Google executives Eric Schmidt and Larry Page, and Virgin’s Richard Branson — invested millions into probes to search for water and metals. But funding challenges forced restructuring, even if the company sowed the seeds of today’s asteroid mining ambitions.

Most US stock indexes rose on Friday after economic data showed an inflation reading in line with expectations.

According to data released today, the core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index — which excludes food and energy — held steady at 2.9% year-on-year in August, slightly below expectations of a 3% increase.

Separately, US President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on branded and patented drugs starting October 1, unless manufacturers build production facilities in the United States.

In trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3% (135 points) to 46,082 by 15:59 GMT, the broad-based S&P 500 added 0.1% (8 points) to 6,613, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.2% (48 points) to 22,336.