The latest Market Talks covering Energy markets. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
0646 GMT - Optical fiber sector is likely to benefit from China's AI data center expansion, according to BofA Securities in a research note. Optical fiber demand is shifting from telecom to AI, driving strong growth in high-end segments, the analysts say. "While overall supply is sufficient, constraints in preform capacity are tightening availability of high-spec fiber and supporting pricing," they say. BofA has a buy rating on Jiangsu Zhongtian Technology on fiber price upside, subsea recovery, and grid growth. Shares last traded at 54.12 yuan. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)
0636 GMT - Inflation remaining unchanged in May will almost certainly mean no interest-rate rise on Thursday from the Bank of England, Joe Nellis at MHA says in a note. Annual inflation was 2.8% in May, in line with the prior month and below forecasts. "The Bank is continuing to hold their nerve, as they monitor the difficult, ongoing trade-off between keeping inflation under control and avoiding further damage to an economy," Nellis says. The BOE may not have to raise rates at all this year, with inflation likely to stay below 4% if peace holds in the Middle East. Still, inflation is likely to edge higher over coming months, even if Middle East tensions are resolved quickly, Nellis adds. (don.forbes@wsj.com)
0600 GMT - Brent crude falls below $80 a barrel after reports that the deal between Washington and Tehran includes waivers of sanctions on Iranian oil sales. The U.S. will allow Iran to start selling oil and fuel once the deal to end the conflict is signed on Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported. The MoU also includes lifting U.S. and Iranian blockades in the Strait of Hormuz. In early trading, Brent is down 0.6% to $78.50 a barrel, while WTI falls 0.8% to $75.46 a barrel. Both benchmarks settled more than 5% lower in the previous session--their lowest closes in more than three months. Meanwhile, data provider Kpler said that at least two Iranian-linked supertankers carrying Kharg Island crude appear to have crossed the U.S. naval blockade line, potentially signaling coordinated fleet activity ahead of any formal sanctions or blockade removal. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
0551 GMT - The German Finance Agency's dual-tranche ultralong Bund auction features the only supply in the eurozone on Wednesday. Germany will auction 1 billion euros of the 3.40% May 2047 Bund and 1.5 billion euros of the 1.80% August 2053 Bund. Bond markets stay supported with Brent oil slipping below the $80 per barrel, says Commerzbank's Hauke Siemssen in a note. In Tuesday's session, long-end yields benefited the most, along with the tightening of eurozone government bond yields spreads, while the front-end faded the rally in the afternoon and the curve flattening from both sides, the rates strategist says. (emese.bartha@wsj.com)
0527 GMT - Japan is rapidly diversifying away from its heavy reliance on Middle Eastern crude amid supply disruptions. The share of Japan's total oil imports from the Middle East on a volume basis fell from around 94% in 2025 to around 80% in April and May, says NLI Research Institute economist Taro Saito. "The diversification of crude sourcing is likely to make further progress," he says.. However, this supply security comes at a premium. Japan's crude import prices from the U.S. during April and May were roughly $10 per barrel higher than price of Middle Eastern crude, Saito says. (megumi.fujikawa@wsj.com)
0517 GMT - 'Normality' seems to have descended on markets this week, following news of the interim peace agreement and memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran, Macquarie's Thierry Wizman says in a note. That is most apparent in the price of crude oil, he says. "That resumption of some normality means that traders might focus instead on central bank decisions this week," the global FX and rates strategist says. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve will announce a rate decision, the first one under the new Chairman Kevin Warsh. Money markets price in a high probability of unchanged interest rates, according to LSEG. Macquarie doesn't want to dismiss the importance of the ongoing decline in crude oil prices on FX, either, he says. (emese.bartha@wsj.com)
0500 GMT - Roughly 5% of iron ore supply looks to be losing money at current prices, according to UBS. "This continues to provide a degree of cost-curve support, even as market fundamentals appear softer, including elevated Chinese port inventories," the bank says. Spot iron ore trades at around $102 per ton, effectively in line with the 95th percentile of the industry's cost curve, says UBS. Yet with inventories building, positioning net short and incremental supply rising, UBS sees "downside risk emerging if demand does not recover and marginal tons begin to exit." If iron ore prices fall, the stocks of higher-margin producers including BHP and Rio Tinto would likely fare better than lower-margin operators including Fortescue and Mineral Resources, UBS says. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 17, 2026 02:46 ET (06:46 GMT)
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