The latest Market Talks covering Energy and Utilities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
2115 GMT - Canada's big energy producers issue a lukewarm response about a deal between PM Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith over an industrial carbon tax. The Oil Sands Alliance is the group behind a carbon-capture and storage project known as Pathways. With the carbon tax out of the way, Carney says construction of Pathways is necessary before he will back the new crude-oil pipeline that Smith wants. The alliance says any industrial carbon levy represents an uncompetitive cost for the sector, adding no major oil-producing state has such a tax. The groups suggests it won't proceed with Pathways unless "the necessary regulatory and fiscal terms are in place." Talks between Ottawa, Alberta and the alliance will likely hinge on how much financing the two levels of government are willing to offer. (paul.vieira@wsj.com, @paulvieira)
1935 GMT - Oil futures post back-to-back gains as the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz starts to raise concerns about falling global inventories. "While strategic releases and demand reduction have prevented immediate chaos, the margin for error is shrinking rapidly," Phil Flynn of the Price Futures Group says in a note. A continued closure of the strait points to tighter physical markets, potential product shortages, and upward pressure on prices in coming weeks and months. On the other hand, prices further out on the curve may be suggesting that demand destruction, strategic releases, and non-Gulf supply responses "are proving more effective and elastic than the bullish narrative suggests." WTI settles up 4.2% at $105.42 a barrel for a 10% weekly gain. Brent rises 3.3% to $109.26, up 7.9% on the week. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1728 GMT - The number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose by five this week to 415, oil services company Baker Hughes reports. It was the highest oil rig count since November, and up by eight since the start of the U.S.-Iran conflict that closed the Strait of Hormuz and sent oil prices into triple digits. Still, producers have proceeded with caution. With $100 a barrel oil it's profitable to drill anywhere, but producers know that isn't going to last forever, says Gary Cunningham of Tradition Energy. "People know that eventually there will be some type of a resolution with Iran and some type of reopening of the strait." Rigs directed at natural gas slipped by one this week to 128. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1337 GMT - U.S. natural gas futures are higher and on track to post weekly gains, supported in part by a warmer weather outlook and a close-to-normal storage report for last week. Nymex natural gas is up 2% at $2.953/mmBtu. "There isn't a lot of fundamental support for a move to $3," says Gary Cunningham of Tradition Energy in a note. "LNG export numbers continue to be limited by maintenance across multiple facilities, but we have seen pipeline exports to Mexico increase to levels slightly higher than normal for this time of year." (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1331 GMT - The 1% on-month rebound in Canadian manufacturing sales volumes taken back in line with the 2025 average, while the jump in S&P Global's manufacturing PMI for April bodes well for the near term outlook, says Capital Economics' Stephen Brown. The rise in sales values was unsurprisingly led by petroleum and coal product sales, though Brown says there was genuine strength elsewhere, including a further recovery in motor vehicle sales. Still, the economist says that unless oil prices drop back soon, Canadian manufacturing is likely to be dragged down alongside global manufacturing activity. (robb.stewart@wsj.com; @RobbMStewart)
1308 GMT - Oil futures look set to end the week with gains as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and little progress is seen toward an agreement between the U.S. and Iran to end the conflict, despite Presidents Trump and Xi agreeing the strait should remain a free, open waterway. Prices are gaining "on what we believe is the realization that, while the Chinese leader agreed that Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon and is likely to buy American oil, the broader geopolitical situation remains unresolved," Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital says in a note. WTI is up 3.1% at $104.34 a barrel and Brent gains 2.4% at $108.29 a barrel. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1306 GMT - Treasury yields creep higher as the Trump-Xi summit yields no apparent breakthrough regarding the war in Iran. Oil prices keep rising, while the WSJ Dollar Index climbs 0.7% to 95.84, its highest level since April. The Empire State manufacturing index jumps to 19.6 in May from 11 in April, versus WSJ consensus of a decline to 7. Industrial production is expected to rebound in April. The 10-year yield is at 4.559%, trading above 4.5% for the first time since July. The two-year is at 4.073%, the highest intraday level in over a year. (paulo.trevisani@wsj.com; @ptrevisani)
1149 GMT - The Canadian government's launch of a new national electricity strategy stands to bring longer-term benefits, particularly to promote more efficient capital investments and in meeting the rise in power demand, say RBC Capital Markets' analysts. That said, the analysts note there isn't much tangible news in Ottawa's announcement for investors to act on. RBC does envisage potential in the move for regulated utilities such as Hydro One, Fortis, Emera and Canadian Utilities to get involved in building more interprovincial interties. (robb.stewart@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 16, 2026 04:20 ET (08:20 GMT)
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