The latest Market Talks covering Commodities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
1604 ET - Cattle being slaughtered remain heavier than seen in previous years. The average weight for animals slaughtered this week came in at 891 pounds. That's up from 865 pounds at this time last year, although down 4 pounds from the prior week. Meanwhile, the pace of cattle slaughter remains below last year's pace, totaling 537,000 head -- down 4.3% from the same time last year. Live cattle futures fell today, falling 0.5% to $2.46075 a pound today. Lean hog futures closed today flat, at 96.625 cents a pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1524 ET - Nymex natural gas futures return early gains to end the session lower with the expiring July contract falling 3.4% to $3.231/mmBtu and the most-active August contract slipping 0.5% to $3.279/mmBtu. "The next test is whether the new prompt month can hold the recent gains as traders move past expiration and focus more directly on July heat, LNG strength, and whether injections begin to slow enough to challenge the storage surplus," Gelber & Associates says in a note.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1513 ET - Oil futures resume their slide on optimism about flows through the Strait of Hormuz, with key benchmarks settling at or near pre-war levels. "Recent data show that crude flows have recovered to high levels, helping restore confidence among market participants," Antonio Di Giacomo of XS.com says in a note. Thursday's attack on a cargo ship temporarily raised concerns about maritime security, but "traders viewed it as an isolated event and remained focused on the broader improvement in transportation and export conditions." Brent settles down 4.3% at $71.99 a barrel, its lowest since Feb. 26. WTI falls 3.7% to $69.23, its lowest close since Feb. 27. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
The number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose by seven this week to 440, the most since June 6, 2025, Baker Hughes reports. The U.S. has added 33 oil rigs since the start of the U.S.-Iran conflict. U.S. crude production averaged 13.8 million barrels a day in recent weeks, according to the EIA which expects higher prices to contribute to an increase to 14.2 million b/d in 2027. The U.S. has been exporting record amounts of crude amid the loss of Middle East supply. "Never before have we been exporting this amount of oil," says Phil Flynn of the Price Futures Group. "I believe that when we get through this we're going to find out that U.S. producers are producing a lot more oil than has been reported. I think you're going to see the numbers get adjusted to the upside." (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1426 ET - Seasonal pressure is an anchor on CBOT wheat futures, and the effect is spreading to corn. "Wheat harvest pressure is intensifying across the Northern Hemisphere," says Brian Grete of Commstock Investments. Last week's Crop Progress report from the USDA showed the winter wheat harvest at 40% complete, with more progress likely jumping in next Monday's report. For corn and soybeans, next week's major reports from the USDA are tempering volumes, with traders playing it safe ahead of those reports. CBOT corn falls 0.4%, soybeans drop 0.1%, and wheat is down 2%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1408 ET - U.S. crops have largely gotten adequate rain and supportive temperatures this month, entering a stretch of heat in July on solid footing. But even if the USDA's acreage report shows increases to crop acreage that exceed expectations, what could balance that out is the hot temperatures crushing European crops. Record-hot temperatures were seen in France this week, as hot as nearly 108 degrees Fahrenheit, according to data from WeatherWealth. The vast majority of France is very dry, the firm says, leaving hot temperatures to scorch parched crops. "Heat arriving this early in the growing season increases crop stress, particularly if accompanied by below-normal rainfall," says Jim Roemer of WeatherWealth. "The key question now is whether Europe's weather problems can offset the increasingly favorable U.S. crop outlook." (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1353 ET - Next week's weather in U.S. crop-growing areas has been anticipated to be possibly cooler than initially anticipated, says AgResource in a note. "The Midday GFS weather model solution is cooler and drier than the overnight run, which is causing prices to set back," says the firm. Wheat is leading the way down, with the most-active contract down 2%, while corn falls 0.3% and soybeans inch down 0.1%. AgResource adds that the EU weather model, which is also considered by analysts and traders when evaluating the potential weather situation of the coming days, won't be available until after the CBOT closes Friday. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1149 ET - Retail orange juice prices stayed at a record-high for a second-straight month, says Nielsen in its latest report published Friday. The firm says that the average cost for a gallon of orange juice held at a record $11.82 for the second straight month. Meanwhile, after showing recovery late last year, gallons of OJ sold has been on a multi-month decline. Through mid-June, sales of OJ were 19.71 million gallons. That's off from 25 million gallons in December, which was the highest since January 2025. FCOJ futures on the Intercontinental Exchange are up 6.2% to $1.51 a pound. That's the lowest futures have been since 2022. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1048 ET - With oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz back to around 80% of pre-war levels, Barclays trims its Brent price estimates to $96 a barrel from $100 for 2026 and to $85 from $88 for 2027. "The recovery in oil flow through the Strait of Hormuz has been very strong, but the backlog has been largely depleted and Iran's insistence on fees and coordination might slow further progress," Amarpreet Singh says in a note. He expects inventory withdrawals to continue for at least a few more weeks, largely due to a lag in production recovery. "It might take almost a year to fill the inventory void created by the war, and it might take longer still for inventories in OECD to fully recover, based on the historical trend," he adds.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1029 ET - Yesterday's quarterly Hogs and Pigs report from the USDA is supporting higher hog futures, with the most-active contract up 0.6%. The report showed that there's the potential for a tighter supply in the second half of this year, says Joe Davis of Futures International in a note. "Producers intend to farrow 2.2% fewer sows this summer and 0.6% fewer this fall, suggesting potential supply tightening later in the year," says Davis. But he adds that even with a "mildly bullish" report, lean hog futures may have further downside. "Charts still need stronger gains to confirm a bottom," says Davis. Live cattle futures fall 0.4%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1000 ET - CBOT grain futures are lower as traders await next week's reports from the USDA showing planted acreage and quarterly stocks. The planting report comes with the spring planting season concluded. Many traders and analysts are anticipating that the USDA will show more acres were planted than previously thought -- especially for wheat and soybeans. "Generally bearish stocks and acreage numbers are expected from the USDA Tuesday," says Matt Zeller of StoneX in a note. The quarterly stocks report is expected to show larger inventories of grains than seen at this time last year. Both reports are scheduled to be published at noon ET Tuesday. CBOT corn is down 0.1%, while soybeans drop 0.5% and wheat is down 2.3%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
0955 ET - A wave of above-normal temperatures moving across the U.S. the next two weeks is keeping a bid in natural gas as the July contract is set to expire. "While trader positioning into July final settlement will dictate today's session, next week could see record heat into the start of the 4th of July holiday weekend and strengthening physical demand to create an upward bias for Nymex futures," Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics says in a note. Production is rising, however, leaving a softer medium-term outlook, he adds. The Nymex July contract is up 0.5% at $3.360/mmBtu and gas for August delivery rises 1% to $3.328. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 26, 2026 16:15 ET (20:15 GMT)
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