The latest Market Talks covering Commodities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
0913 ET - With the U.S.-China summit ending with no specific agreements to increase Chinese purchases of U.S. agriculture, CBOT grain futures are lower premarket. "Ag markets are seeing follow-through selling with speculative buyers caught on the wrong side of the market as they were aggressive buyers ahead of the Trump/Xi summit and the market was disappointed with the results that didn't really show any new meaningful demand," says Doug Bergman of RCM Alternatives in a note. Bergman adds that weakness in prices is typically seen at this time of the crop season, when planting is over halfway complete. Corn falls 1.2%, soybeans are down 1%, and wheat slides 1.4%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
0908 ET - 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)
0623 ET - Crude palm oil ended higher, driven by stronger crude oil and soybean oil prices, according to David Ng, a trader at Kuala Lumpur-based Iceberg X. Ng sees support for palm oil at 4,300 ringgit a ton and resistance at 4,500 ringgit a ton. The U.S. stock market's solid performance is also supporting sentiment, he says. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for July delivery rose 24 ringgit to 4,417 ringgit a ton.(tracy.qu@wsj.com)
0355 ET - Gold prices drop below $4,600 a troy ounce, pressured by a stronger dollar and rising Treasury yields as a surge in U.S. inflation fuels fears of higher interest rates. In early trading, gold futures in New York fall 2.2% to $4,580.80 a troy ounce, while silver plunges 7% to $79.33 an ounce. "The stronger-than-expected rise in consumer and producer prices raised concerns that the Fed may need to increase interest rates in the short term," analysts at ANZ say. Meanwhile, U.S. two-year and 10-year Treasury yields climbed to their highest levels since February and July 2025, respectively, reducing demand for non-yielding assets like gold and silver. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
0332 ET - London's miners slide in opening trade as silver and gold prices fall. The share slide is most pronounced among the precious metal miners, with Fresnillo and Hochschild Mining both trading down around 5.6%. Peer Endeavour Mining falls 3.4%. Silver futures are down nearly 8% to $78.66 an ounce while gold falls 2.3% to $4,573.8 a troy ounce. This comes as traders bet U.S. interest rates will stay higher for longer after strong U.S. inflation data. Higher rates typically hurt non-yielding assets like silver and gold. Diversified miner Anglo American slides 3.9%. Commodities major Glencore is down 2.4%. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)
2320 ET - Iron ore falls in Asian trading, with the most-traded iron-ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange down 0.55% at 811.5 yuan a ton. The downside risks of chasing iron ore's rally has risen, say Nanhua Futures analysts say in a research note. Meanwhile, despite shipping costs staying elevated and providing some support for iron ore prices, the destocking pace of port inventories has slowed, signaling weakness in the demand outlook, Nanhua Futures adds. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)
2239 ET - Palm oil prices rise in early trade amid bargain hunting, suggesting temporary consolidation following recent losses, AmInvestment Bank says in a note. Traders are also watching U.S.-China trade talks for signals on agricultural commodity demand, it says. However, technical analysis suggests crude palm oil futures appear bearish. AmInvestment Bank pegs resistance at 4,440 ringgit a ton and support at 4,366 ringgit a ton. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for July delivery is higher by 9 ringgit at 4,402 ringgit a ton. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
2212 ET - Copper falls in early Asian trading, with the three-month contract on the London Metal Exchange 1.6% lower at $13,721 a ton, snapping an eight-day rally. The moves come as elevated prices deter purchases in China, with fabricators seeing orders for copper rod weakening this month, ANZ Research analysts say in a note. Still, they see Chinese copper demand broadly resilient this year, with consumption from the clean energy technology sectors offsetting weakness in the property and construction sectors. Investors are also monitoring the Trump-Xi summit for signs of any easing of trade tensions between the world's two largest economies, ANZ adds.(jason.chau@wsj.com)
1956 ET - Gold prices are higher in early Asian trade, supported by continued uncertainties in geopolitical tensions. Strategic buying by central banks, the irreversible trend toward de-dollarization and the long-term persistence of fiscal deficits will continue to support the demand of gold as a medium and long term allocation, says Zhongtai Futures analysts in a note. Investors are watching for the outcome of Trump-Xi summit to further assess geopolitical tensions. Spot gold is 0.1% higher at $4,653.66/oz. (jiahui.huang@wsj.com; @ivy_jiahuihuang)
1859 ET [Dow Jones]--GrainCorp's bull at Jefferies is prepared to look through the grain handler's near-term challenges. GrainCorp's 1H revenue beat was accompanied by evidence of a margin squeeze caused by an oversupply of grain. That left 1H earnings broadly in line with forecasts. It also points to a softer-than-expected 2H and FY 2027, says analyst John Campbell. Still, he highlights the medium-term appeal of GrainCorp's stock, noting management had reaffirmed guidance and farm-input disruptions from the Middle East conflict look to have stabilized. Other attractions include GrainCorp's active share buyback program. Jefferies retains a buy call on GrainCorp, while cutting its FY 2026-2028 EPS forecasts by 9-18%. Its price target falls 3.8% to A$7.50/share. GrainCorp ended Thursday at A$5.38. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
1833 ET [Dow Jones]--A hat-trick of concerns appeared to drive GrainCorp's 14% share-price fall on Thursday, suggests Ord Minnett. GrainCorp's 1H result was solid. However, GrainCorp reported a core cash position of just A$163 million, down from A$321 million at end-September. Analyst John Lawlor says ongoing farm-input disruptions from the Middle East conflict and a questionable outlook for the FY 2027 crop due to poor weather conditions also caused some skittishness. Ord Minnett says it's less concerned about the cash position. It believes this will return to FY 2025 levels by year-end. It also says there's enough fuel and fertilizer for the FY 2027 crop. The lead concern is forecast rainfall having a significant effect on next year's crop volume, Ord Minnett says. It retains an accumulate call on GrainCorp. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
1536 ET - U.S. natural gas futures settle higher with a warmer weather outlook for the latter half of May seen lifting power-sector demand and a weekly inventory build landing in line with the norm. The EIA reported an 85 Bcf increase in underground storage for last week to 2,290 Bcf, which was 140 Bcf or 6.5% above the five-year average. If forecasts for above normal temperatures pan out, "look for natural gas to rally towards the $3 level," Robert Yawger of Mizuho says in a note. Nymex natural gas settles up 1% at $2.894/mmBtu. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 15, 2026 09:15 ET (13:15 GMT)
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