The Japanese yen rose in Asian trading on Monday at the start of the week against a basket of major and minor currencies, moving into positive territory versus the US dollar amid strong safe-haven demand fueled by concerns over global financial stability.

The Bank of Japan meets later this week to discuss the appropriate monetary policy for the world’s fourth-largest economy, with expectations it will keep interest rates unchanged for the fifth consecutive meeting.

Price Overview

• USD/JPY today: the dollar fell about 0.2% against the yen to ¥147.39 from the opening level of ¥147.65, after hitting a high of ¥147.77.

• The yen ended Friday down about 0.3% versus the dollar, its second loss in three days, pressured by weak prospects for a Japanese rate hike.

• Over the past week, the yen lost 0.2% against the dollar, its third straight weekly decline, amid mounting political uncertainty in Japan following Prime Minister Ishiba’s resignation.

Financial Concerns

Fitch’s downgrade of France’s sovereign credit rating on Friday to its lowest ever sparked broad concern in global financial markets. The loss of AA- status for the eurozone’s second-largest economy is seen as a troubling sign of Europe’s fragile fiscal situation.

The downgrade reflects a mix of domestic political tensions and surging public debt, increasing pressure on European bond markets and raising investor fears of contagion to other economies in the bloc.

Traders have recently dumped long-term government bonds in Europe, the UK, and the US amid renewed concerns over rising debt levels in major economies. This shift has raised market worries that governments worldwide may lose control over fiscal deficits, threatening higher borrowing costs and increased pressure on global financial stability.

Bank of Japan

• The Bank of Japan meets on Thursday to review policy, with decisions due Friday.

• Market pricing for a 25-basis-point rate hike at this meeting currently stands near 20%.

• With expectations firmly leaning toward no change in rates for a fifth straight meeting, focus will be on Governor Kazuo Ueda’s comments regarding the policy outlook.

Yen Outlook

Analysts at MUFG wrote that the yen’s performance remains weak in the near term, weighed down by Japan’s political uncertainty after Ishiba’s resignation.

They added that the BOJ will need to signal the possibility of a rate hike soon—perhaps as early as next month—to help reverse yen weakness.

Copper prices fell on Friday as the dollar strengthened against most major currencies, alongside concerns over Chinese demand and rising warehouse inventories.

The Yangshan copper premium rose 1.8% to $58 per ton, the highest level in three months.

The Chinese yuan hit a one-week high against the US dollar, making dollar-denominated metals more attractive to Chinese buyers.

Meanwhile, China’s imports of unwrought copper reached 425,000 tons in August, down from July but higher than a year earlier. Imports of copper concentrates climbed to 2.76 million tons, the highest level in four months.

Analysts at ANZ Bank said in a note: “Falling treatment charges have failed to curb China’s appetite for copper concentrates. Favorable import parity factors and expectations of weaker domestic production are likely to keep refined copper imports strong in September.”

On the trade side, overall Chinese export growth slowed in August to its weakest pace in six months, while imports rose 1.3%, compared with 4.1% growth in the previous month.

Registered copper inventories at the London Metal Exchange stood at 155,825 tons, with outflows of 2,125 tons across several locations, along with a fresh 8,500-ton cancellation in South Korea, according to daily exchange data.

Separately, the US dollar index rose 0.2% to 97.7 points at 16:24 GMT, after hitting a high of 97.8 and a low of 97.4.

In US trading, copper futures for December delivery fell 0.2% to $4.65 per pound as of 16:31 GMT.

Silver prices rose in the European market on Friday, extending gains for the third day in a row, surpassing the psychological barrier of $42 an ounce for the first time since 2011, marking a new 14-year high, and heading for a fourth consecutive weekly gain.

A series of weak data on the US labor market, along with moderate US inflation figures, boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by 25 basis points next week.

Price Overview

• Silver prices today: Silver rose by 2.2% to $42.47, the highest since September 2011, from the opening level of $41.57, with a low of $41.40.

• At Thursday’s settlement, silver gained 1.0% in its second consecutive daily rise, supported by declines in the dollar and US yields.

Weekly Trading

Over the course of this week, which officially concludes at today’s settlement, silver is up about 3.5% so far, heading for its fourth consecutive weekly gain.

These weekly gains are attributed to strong demand for precious metals as a safe haven, amid mounting concerns about rising global debt levels and escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and Eastern Europe.

US Interest Rates

• Weekly jobless claims rose last week, confirming a significant weakening in the labor market. This followed last Friday’s US employment report, which indicated that job growth nearly stalled in August alongside a higher unemployment rate.

• According to the CME FedWatch tool: the probability of a 25 basis point rate cut at the September meeting is currently priced at 100%, while the chance of a 50 basis point cut stands at 7.5%.

• The probability of a 25 basis point rate cut in October is also fully priced in at 100%, with the chance of a 50 basis point cut steady at 6%.

• The Federal Reserve meets next week to discuss monetary policy adjustments in line with US economic developments, with a 25 basis point rate cut widely expected.

Chinese Demand

Industrial activity in China exceeded expectations in August, recording its fastest pace of growth in five months, according to recent data released in Beijing, in the latest sign of improving economic activity in the world’s largest consumer of metals and commodities.

Bitcoin rose on Friday, following gains in risk assets amid ongoing bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next week.

However, gains in cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, were capped by growing doubts about the viability of companies holding massive Bitcoin reserves, after Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy – Nasdaq: MSTR) was rejected for inclusion in the S&P 500 index earlier this month.

Bitcoin continued to trade in a narrow range below $120,000. The world’s largest cryptocurrency gained 1.2% to $115,604.3 by 01:56 ET (05:56 GMT). Over the week, it rose 4.9%, as some buyers returned after the drop from record highs in mid-August.

JPMorgan Chase: Rejection of Strategy inclusion a blow to corporate Bitcoin reserves

JPMorgan said the S&P 500 committee’s rejection of Strategy represented a major setback for the approach of companies holding massive Bitcoin reserves.

“This indicates the committee is concerned about including companies like MicroStrategy, which are effectively Bitcoin investment funds, in the index,” analysts wrote in a note this week.

The sharp rise in the company’s valuation due to its massive Bitcoin exposure had allowed it to be included in other indices, including the Nasdaq 100 and Russell 2000 last year. That attracted more buying in the stock as index funds adjusted their holdings accordingly.

But JPMorgan added that the trend may have “reached its limits,” noting the rejection also came amid investor fatigue in the corporate treasury space, raising further questions about the sustainability of Strategy’s model in the long run.

While the company’s stock far outperformed Bitcoin in 2024, that was not the case in 2025; Strategy shares are up 8.6% year-to-date, compared with a nearly 24% gain in Bitcoin. The company remains the world’s largest institutional holder of Bitcoin, with over 600,000 tokens in its reserves.

Crypto prices today: Broad gains on Fed rate cut bets

Broader cryptocurrencies rose on Friday, supported by renewed risk appetite amid bets on a Fed rate cut next week. Altcoins were also on track for a strong week after several weeks of sharp losses.

Rate cut bets persisted even though US CPI data showed inflation remained elevated in August, with President Donald Trump’s new tariffs coming into effect.

But weekly jobless claims data showed continued weakness in the labor market, boosting expectations for monetary easing from the Fed.

CME FedWatch data showed markets pricing in a 94.6% chance of a 25-basis-point cut at the Fed’s September 16–17 meeting, versus a 5.4% chance of a 50-basis-point cut.

Rate cuts are typically seen as supportive for risk assets such as cryptocurrencies, as they increase liquidity and encourage greater speculative flows.

Ether, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, rose 2.6% to $4,552.31 and is up 6.6% this week.

XRP climbed 2.2% to $3.0658, gaining 8.8% this week.

Cardano added 1.8%, and Solana jumped 6.7%.

Among meme coins, Dogecoin rose 5%, while $TRUMP added about 0.9%.