The latest Market Talks covering Energy markets. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
1935 ET - Oil futures fall in early Asian trade on a possible technical correction after crude futures rose for the third straight session overnight. "Looking ahead, oil markets are likely to remain highly sensitive to geopolitical developments and progress in negotiations" between the U.S. and Iran, Kudotrade's Konstantinos Chrysikos says in an email. "Any credible breakthrough and the return to normal export conditions from the Middle East could gradually drive crude prices to the downside, although ongoing disruptions continue to support prices," he adds. Front-month WTI crude oil futures are 0.7% lower at $95.37 per barrel. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)
1904 ET - Fuel refiner and marketer Ampol is effectively conducting a share buyback by settling the equity component of its EG Australia acquisition in cash, says Macquarie. It says Ampol's decision is equivalent to a A$315 million buyback at A$34.28/share. In effect, Ampol is returning A$0.80/share to its shareholders. "There is signal in this," Macquarie says. It suggests a rising corporate valuation, which may capture the likelihood of policy reforms ahead. It also points to 2Q earnings momentum, given it implies Ampol's gearing would have otherwise slipped below its end-June target. Macquarie retains an "outperform" call on Ampol and raises its price target by 14%, to A$46.50/share. Ampol ended Wednesday at A$34.96. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
1815 ET [Dow Jones]--Fitch Ratings lowered its 2026 outlook for the global airline sector to "deteriorating" from "stable," as conflict in the Middle East has led to an increase in the price of jet fuel. In addition, Fitch said the sector faces a rising risk of demand destruction driven by higher ticket prices, and macroeconomic pressures. Jet fuel prices have risen from the $2.30 to $2.40 per gallon range before the conflict to about $3.50 per gallon currently. However, the impact on the sector is uneven, Fitch added. "The impact is more severe for carriers with direct exposure to the region or weak financial profiles before the rise in jet fuel costs," Fitch said. (stephen.nakrosis@wsj.com)An intraday spike eased after President Trump said he talked to Israel's prime minister and Hezbollah. "Oil Futures Rise On Concerns About U.S.-Iran Talks -- Market Talk," at 3:01 p.m. ET on June 1, incorrectly said the spike didn't ease.
1510 ET - Crude futures rise for a third consecutive session as a renewed exchange of fire between the U.S. and Iran raise tension and concerns that oil will be shut in for longer. "If the violence in the Middle East continues to increase and the timeline on a ceasefire agreement continues to expand further into the future, then eventually the market is going to trade through $100 sooner rather than later," Mizuho's Robert Yawger says in a note. "Every day the Strait of Hormuz is shut in, 11 million to 14 million bpd of oil fails to make it to market, and barrels are taken out of storage someplace else to compensate." WTI rises 2.4% to $96.02 a barrel and Brent rises 1.9% to $97.81.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1505 ET - U.S. natural gas futures settle higher ahead of weekly storage data that are expected to show a modest increase in the supply surplus. Prices are supported by prospects of higher weather-driven demand as temperatures rise into the summer, and expectations that LNG exports will pick up following maintenance outages. Analysts in a Wall Street Journal survey predict a 105 Bcf injection into storage for last week, putting inventories 148 Bcf above the five-year average. Nymex natural gas gains 1.5% to $3.214/mmBtu.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1404 ET - The global oversupply of oil prior to the U.S.-Iran war is the main reason for the market's relative calm with front-month Brent under $100 a barrel, Macquarie Group economists say in a note. If the Strait of Hormuz reopens soon, they expect prices to fall sharply. "However, with stocks drawing rapidly, if the strait remains closed, at some point prices will need to move much higher: the clock is ticking." Current rates of withdrawal suggest the market "will be OK for another month or two," but if the strait remains closed at the end of the northern hemisphere summer, "physical availability will tighten materially," they add. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1204 ET - U.S. distillate inventories saw some relief last week, rising by 1.5 million barrels to 102.3 million barrels and pulling away from the 100-million-barrel level that hasn't been breached to the downside since 2003. Still, if the downward inventory trend continues through the summer, stocks could reach "especially low levels" by 4Q with resulting pressure on diesel prices even if pressure comes off the underlying price of crude, says Matt Muenster of transportation technology firm Breakthrough. "For many businesses such as manufacturers and trucking companies, the recent inventory trends and what they suggest for Q3-Q4 2026 make it wise to continue budgeting for very high diesel prices."(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1114 ET - U.S. commercial crude oil stocks fall for a sixth straight week as export demand remains high. Inventories were down by 8 million barrels at 433.7 million barrels, with an additional 8 million barrels released from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. "The oil tanks are getting emptier each week Hormuz stays closed," says David Russell of TradeStation. "Another huge drop in the SPR shows how hard the government is working to cushion the blow of the massive supply shocks in the Middle East. Price pressures are growing into the summer." WTI is up 2.1% at $95.68 a barrel and Brent rises 1.7% to $97.67 following a renewed exchange of fire between the U.S. and Iran. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1032 ET - Oil prices trim earlier gains but remain about 1% higher as fresh hostilities in the Middle East undermine expectations of a near-term agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude is up 1.2% to $97.17 a barrel, while WTI rises 1.1% to $94.79 a barrel. "The situation in the Middle East is heating up," says Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro. "Investors are growing increasingly weary of the White House's promises of an imminent deal with Iran." While the oil market has somehow gradually adjusted to the shock, prolonged disruptions in the Strait fuel concerns that global oil inventories might not be sufficient to offset lost supply. Market participants now await the release of the EIA's U.S. crude inventory data. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
1018 ET - The Norwegian krone is likely to weaken if oil and gas prices decline in coming months on a potential de-escalation of the Iran war, Danske Bank analysts say in a note. "In addition, we believe that Norges Bank's desire to re-anchor inflation expectations will come with a cost in the form of weaker growth and higher unemployment." Higher rates when the economy weakens will eventually contribute to a weaker krone, they say. The Norges Bank raised rates in May. Moreover, a potentially stronger dollar could contribute to a weakening in assets positively correlated to economic cycles including the krone, they say. The euro falls 0.1% to 10.7970 krone. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)
0954 ET - Crude oil prices are up over $95 a barrel, moving back towards the $100 mark as Iran and the U.S. once again exchange fire--seemingly moving the timeline backwards for reaching a peace deal and reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Higher crude oil had been a catalyst for rising grain futures, due to grains' usage in renewable fuels, although grains don't seem to be getting as much of a boost from higher oil as they had in previous months. "A rallying crude oil market hasn't stopped the bleeding on our commodity markets," says Matt Bennett of AgMarket.net in a note. Corn down 0.5%, soybeans rise 0.2%, and wheat is off 0.1%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 03, 2026 19:35 ET (23:35 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comments