Overview

• At 9:15 a.m. on Sept. 30, the Nikkei stood at 45,001.82, down 41.93 from the prior close as currency headwinds persisted.
• The index had slumped earlier on Sept. 29 to a morning close of 44,892.52, with exporter shares sold and ex-dividend flows adding to the drop.
• The yen traded in the high ¥148 per dollar range, reaching about ¥148.56–58 late on Sept. 29, roughly ¥1.27 stronger than a week earlier and little changed into Sept. 30.
• BOJ board member Asahi Noguchi said the need to adjust policy has grown, a comment that encouraged yen buying alongside reduced U.S. inflation concerns after August PCE data.
• U.S. stocks extended gains on Sept. 29, with the Dow up $68.78 as traders leaned into continued Fed rate-cut expectations, though worries about a potential government shutdown limited upside.