The latest Market Talks covering Commodities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
1534 ET - Lean hog futures settle up 0.6% to 97.2 cents a pound, rising while live cattle futures sink 0.7% to $2.4095 a pound. Through midday, average carcass cutout prices were up $3.31 per hundredweight, to $97.78 per cwt, according to data from the USDA. Hogs end the week with a higher close after settling lower for 5 out of the past 6 trading sessions, according to data from FactSet. For cattle, screwworm continues to be a central concern -- with APHIS reporting 9 cases of the parasite as of Friday afternoon. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1528 ET - Oil futures settle at multimonth lows as the U.S. and Iran move closer to an agreement to end the conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's foreign minister said on X that a memorandum of understanding "has never been closer" but is pending finalization. The oil price move lower is "reinforced by broader concerns around rising global supply and softer demand expectations, even though recent U.S. inventory data offered a bullish offset," Gelber & Associates says in a note. "For now, crude looks highly headline-driven, with any confirmation of de-escalation likely keeping pressure on prices while a setback in talks could quickly rebuild risk premium." WTI settles down 3.2% at $84.88 a barrel, its lowest close since April 17. Brent falls 3.4% to $87.33 a barrel, its lowest since March 5. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1521 ET - U.S. natural gas futures end the session with small gains but are lower on the week with the weather set to cool off in coming days, limiting power-sector demand. A recovery in LNG exports, higher cooling demand into early July and a widening storage deficit compared with last year may offer near-term support, Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics says in a note. Longer-term, upside obstacles include an inventory surplus over the five-year average, "conspicuously absent" durable summer heat east of the Rockies, and a coming wave of production growth in the Permain basin, he adds. Nymex natural gas settles up 1.1% at $3.120/mmBtu for a 3.4% weekly loss.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1431 ET - Gold finishes up 3.1%, while silver gains 6.2% as a preliminary deal to end the three-and-a-half-month conflict between the U.S. and Iran appears within reach. "Gold prices are largely moving in line with statements from President Trump and continue to remain affected by broader macro factors," says ADM Investor Services in a note. While gold and silver close the day higher, they finish the week with losses. Gold off 2.8% to $4,215 a troy ounce, and silver down 1.6% to $67.859 a troy ounce for the week. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1353 ET - CBOT grains have largely pared earlier gains following cool and wet forecasts heading into the weekend. "The cool/wet weather favors corn and soybean crops, but could cause disease issues in wheat by late June," says AgResource in a note. CBOT corn is up 0.5%, while soybeans are down 0.1% and wheat rises 0.2%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1346 ET - The number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose by two this week to 433 in a seventh straight increase, oil services company Baker Hughes reports. The EIA expects higher oil prices to encourage drilling activity, raising crude oil production to 13.7 million barrels a day this year from 13.6 million b/d in 2025, and to 14.2 million b/d in 2027. "Rising crude oil prices drive crude oil production higher in our forecast, which results in growth in associated natural gas production," the EIA said this week in its latest monthly outlook. Rigs directed at natural gas fell by three this week to 121, according to Baker Hughes. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1327 ET - Oil futures are trading at two-month lows as the market maintains expectations for the U.S. and Iran to soon reach a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. But for further significant declines "there needs to be actual evidence of recovery in Persian Gulf exports," says Pavel Molchanov, investment strategy analyst at Raymond James. "Not hopes, not expectations, not promises, actual ships--20 a day would be a good number--passing through Hormuz." The slide from over $100 a barrel to $85 for WTI "represents the low-hanging fruit," he says. "There are a lot of moving parts. The politics, the shipping, the oil fields, they all have to align in a sequence for meaningful recovery in oil exports." WTI is off 3.2% at $84.91 a barrel. Brent is off 3.4% at $87.34. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1323 ET - Triple Flag Precious Metals' new gold stream from Australia is positive for the company but the value is tied to gold prices and reserves. In a TD Cowen report, Derick Ma says notes that internal rate of return is modest at "0.6% on our long-term gold price of $3,600/oz (or 2.4% at spot gold of $4,200/oz)" meaning the deal's value improves mainly if reserves grow or gold prices rise. The stream is expected to deliver roughly 10,100 gold-equivalent ounces a year over a 14-year mine life, with Ravenswood positioned in the first half of the cost curve of the global cost curve. Ma says that Ravenswood hosts 1.8 million ounces of additional resources, offering potential mine-life extension and further upside to the stream. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1158 ET - Weather seems to be taking a back seat these days for traders in CBOT grain futures. "Almost everything today is money flow in response to geopolitical news," says Karl Setzer of Consus Ag Consulting in a note. But while macro-level economics are drawing outsized attention, a report from the NOAA's Climate Prediction Center that the climate has shifted into an El Niño system, can't be ignored. An active El Niño has traders adding risk premium back into grains today, says Setzer. CBOT corn is up 1%, soybeans rise 0.3%, and wheat climbs 0.7%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1051 ET - Live cattle futures are down 0.6%, with traders and analysts clearly focused on the status of the New World screwworm outbreak in the southern U.S. The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service website says 9 cases have been reported in the U.S., with 8 in Texas and 1 in New Mexico. Lean hogs fall 1.3%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1042 ET - Oil futures stem losses as President Trump says on Truth Social that terms of a deal that "Iran leaked" have nothing to do with what was agreed to "in writing," leaving the market wondering whether the signing of an accord is imminent. "With them, there is no such thing as dealing in good faith," he says, adding that "They better get their act together, and FAST!" WTI is off 1.3% at $86.60 a barrel and Brent is down 1.2% at $89.29. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1035 ET - Grain analysts and traders are digesting the USDA's latest WASDE data indicating the U.S. Hard Red Winter wheat crop is at its smallest since 1957. The market is watching the potential impact of lower production and ending stocks, analysts with Commerzbank say in a note. "The further deterioration in the crop outlook in the U.S. and the tight supply situation on the global wheat market point to higher wheat prices in the coming months," says the firm, also noting that the USDA revised its projection for Australian wheat crops lower. Most-active CBOT wheat futures rise 0.9%, while corn climbs 1% and soybeans advance 0.2%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 12, 2026 16:15 ET (20:15 GMT)
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