The Japanese yen declined in the Asian market on Friday against a basket of major and minor currencies, continuing to move in negative territory for the second consecutive day against the US dollar, and is on the verge of incurring a second straight weekly loss, ahead of the House of Councillors elections in Japan during the weekend.

Data showed a slowdown in core inflation in Japan, which reduced inflationary pressures on monetary policymakers at the Bank of Japan, leading to a decline in the likelihood of a rate hike in July.

The Price

• The dollar rose against the yen by about 0.1% to (¥148.71), from today’s opening price of (¥148.60), recording a low of (¥148.30).

• The yen lost 0.5% against the dollar at Thursday’s settlement, resuming losses that had paused the previous day as part of a recovery from a three-month low of ¥149.19.

Weekly Trading

Over the course of this week’s trading, which officially concludes at today’s price settlement, the Japanese yen is down so far by about 0.85% against the US dollar, and is on track to record a second consecutive weekly loss.

Japanese Elections

On July 20, Japan will hold House of Councillors elections, where 124 out of 248 members will be elected for six-year terms. These elections are considered a key indicator of the ruling government's popularity.

This is especially significant after the October 2024 House of Representatives elections, in which the ruling coalition (the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito) lost its majority, potentially affecting the dynamics of the upcoming elections.

The latest opinion polls in Japan showed that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s coalition is at risk of losing its majority in the House of Councillors.

Trade Negotiations

Japan’s chief trade negotiator, Ryusei Akazawa, held talks with US Trade Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday regarding tariffs, as Tokyo strives to avoid the imposition of a 25% tax unless an agreement is reached by the August 1 deadline.

Core Inflation

Data released today in Tokyo showed that Japan’s core Consumer Price Index rose by 3.3% in June, below market expectations of a 3.4% increase. The index had risen by 3.7% in June, the highest level since January 2023.

Undoubtedly, the slowdown in prices reduces inflationary pressures on monetary policymakers at the Bank of Japan, thereby diminishing the chances of interest rate hikes in the second half of this year.

Japanese Interest Rate

• Following the above data, the pricing of the likelihood that the Bank of Japan would raise interest rates by a quarter percentage point in the July meeting declined from 45% to 35%.

• To reassess those expectations, investors are awaiting the release of further data on inflation, unemployment, and wages in Japan.

Corn futures in Chicago recorded fresh contract lows again this week, while soybean prices edged closer to single digits, as forecasts continue to point to abundant U.S. crops.

December corn contracts remain slightly above last year’s levels, while November soybean contracts reached their lowest for this date in five years. However, when adjusted for inflation, current July averages for both corn and soybeans are at their lowest for any July since 2006.

This sharp decline comes as U.S. exporters struggle to maintain their global market share in grains and oilseeds—once considered strongholds—amid continued expansion of Brazilian production.

Low prices weigh on U.S. farmers

Low prices are particularly painful for U.S. farmers, as input costs remain relatively high. Corn prices have fallen by at least 30% since mid-2022, both in nominal and inflation-adjusted terms.

Yet the national average cost of producing corn has declined by only 3% this year compared to 2022, and by 11% after accounting for inflation.

In other words, today’s $4-per-bushel corn price does not carry the same value it once did, even though U.S. supply forecasts remain historically modest.

2006 Benchmark

So far in July, the average corn price for December contracts on the Chicago Board of Trade stands at $4.21 per bushel, while the average for November soybean contracts is $10.20.

This compares to full-month July 2024 averages of $4.12 for corn and $10.67 for soybeans.

U.S. data released Tuesday showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.7% year-over-year in June, pushing the inflation-adjusted average corn price for July 2024 to $4.23—roughly equal to the adjusted price of July 2020.

In nominal terms, corn prices have been lower in July on 11 occasions since 2006.

But after adjusting for inflation, the current $4.21 price is the lowest since 2006, when the inflation-adjusted price was $4.19—or $2.65 in nominal terms.

As for soybeans, there have been 9 Julys since 2006 where nominal prices were lower than the current average of $10.20.

Yet after adjusting for inflation, this is also the lowest since 2006, when the inflation-adjusted price was $9.74—or $6.15 in nominal terms.

Modest rebound… but still far from the peak

Despite a slight rebound in corn and soybean prices this week, they remain well below this year’s highs recorded in February, when U.S. crop insurance guarantees for the upcoming harvest season were set.

Still, the decline in prices since then is not exceptional—something that dampens enthusiasm for bullish investors. So far this month, December corn contracts are trading 10% below the February average, a smaller drop than in the previous two years.

November soybean contracts are down just 3% compared to February, even though larger declines were seen in four of the past seven years, including 2024.

Are supplies justifying the drop?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) expects U.S. ending corn stocks for the 2025–2026 season to rise by 24% year-over-year.

This follows a projected 24% decline in 2024–2025, which ends on August 31.

A year ago, forecasts called for a 12% increase in 2024–2025—similar to the 18% forecast for 2020–2021.

Interestingly, inflation-adjusted corn prices in July 2020 and 2024 are very close to current levels, suggesting a logical relationship between supplies and prices.

But that argument weakens when considering actual volumes. The projected ending stocks for 2025–2026 stand at 1.66 billion bushels—21% and 37% lower, respectively, than the forecasts for 2024–2025 and 2020–2021 at the same point in the calendar.

Still, the market may be trading on the assumption of a final stock figure closer to 2 billion bushels, given the strong likelihood of improved yields—which supports the rationale for continued low prices.

Soybeans… potential support

The USDA estimates that U.S. soybean stocks for 2025–2026 will decline by 11% year-over-year—the first annual drop expected in July since 2020, when the figure was -32%.

In July 2019, the forecast was for a 24% drop. But the average inflation-adjusted soybean prices in July 2019 and 2020 were both above $11 per bushel, suggesting room for prices to rise this year—especially if August weather forecasts turn unfavorable.

Corn

As for trading, December corn futures settled down 0.8% at $4.21 per bushel.

Soybeans

November soybean futures rose 0.7% to $10.26 per bushel.

Wheat

September wheat futures closed down 1.3% at $5.33 per bushel.

Ethereum edged lower on Thursday amid profit-taking after the cryptocurrency surged to a five-month high on Wednesday, driven by a growing wave of publicly listed companies adding ETH to their treasuries.

Earlier this month, Minnesota-based SharpLink Gaming announced a $225 million Ethereum acquisition, according to a press release issued Tuesday. The company had pivoted from online gambling marketing to crypto treasury strategy in May after raising $425 million in funding and appointing Ethereum co-founder and Consensys CEO Joseph Lubin to its board.

This move made SharpLink the largest public holder of Ethereum, with a treasury reaching 280,000 ETH — equivalent to roughly $884 million at current prices. The firm’s stock (SBET) has surged over 1,000% since its shift to crypto, according to TradingView.

Similarly, BitMine Immersion Technologies last month announced the creation of its own ETH treasury. The Bitcoin mining firm raised $250 million in late June to build an Ethereum reserve, appointing Fundstrat’s Tom Lee as chairman.

Since then, BitMine has purchased over $500 million worth of Ethereum, and its shares (BMNR) have jumped more than 1,100% following its first ETH acquisition. Notably, Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund disclosed a 9.1% stake in the company on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Bit Digital, another Bitcoin miner, announced in June it would halt mining operations to focus on Ethereum-based treasury and staking strategies. Last week, the company fully converted its reserves into Ethereum, now holding 100,603 ETH — worth over $316 million. On Monday, it announced a $67.3 million stock sale to acquire more ETH.

“Ethereum is no longer just a speculative asset,” said Kevin Rasher, founder of crypto lending platform RAAC, in a note to Decrypt. “It’s now a yield-generating programmable financial asset that institutions see as a store of value. That’s a major factor supporting ETH’s price, as corporate treasuries reduce circulating supply and reflect long-term confidence.”

These developments reflect a broader trend of public companies leveraging crypto treasuries to boost stock performance, echoing Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin strategy.

For example, Canadian firm Cannabis Sativa rebranded as Dogecoin Cash after acquiring $3.5 million worth of DOGE. More recently, a group of investors revealed a $540,000 purchase of meme token Dogwifhat on Solana, announcing plans to go public via a reverse merger in an attempt to ride the wave of institutional crypto adoption.

At the time of writing, Ethereum was down 0.2% at $3,389.8 on CoinMarketCap, as of 21:13 GMT.

Oil prices climbed on Thursday amid escalating security tensions in the Middle East and following upbeat US economic data that boosted optimism over demand.

Oil fields in Iraq's Kurdistan region were subjected to ongoing drone attacks for a fourth consecutive day, leading to a reduction in the region's crude output by an estimated 140,000 to 150,000 barrels per day, according to Reuters.

Positive data on US retail sales and jobless claims further supported sentiment toward the American economy and local demand growth.

At settlement, Brent crude futures for September delivery rose by 1.5%, or $1, to $69.52 a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for August delivery increased by 1.75%, or $1.16, to close at $67.54 a barrel.