The latest Market Talks covering Commodities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
0905 ET - Treasury yields edge lower as the economy remains solid despite lingering geopolitical tension. President Trump raises doubts about the U.S. electoral process in a televised speech Thursday night. Residential construction accelerates more than expected in June, while the import price index cools down. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment index is expected to tick higher to 50.5 from 49.5, in a WSJ survey. Oil futures rise more than 2%. The WSJ Dollar Index climbs 0.1%. The 10-year yield is at 4.533%, down from yesterday's settle of 4.568%. The two-year slips to 4.143% from 4.155%. (paulo.trevisani@wsj.com; @ptrevisani)
0846 ET - Crude futures are higher and on track for hefty weekly gains as the U.S. continues its strikes against Iranian military targets, and Iran fires at sites in other Gulf countries. "We still consider that the escalation in the war between the U.S. and Iran is consistent with our baseline view that the recovery in oil flows would be bumpy and punctuated by flare-ups," Kieran Tompkins of Capital Economics says in a note. "That said, recent events have markedly raised the chances of a more adverse scenario where oil flows are constrained for another sustained period." WTI is up 2.6% at $80.97 a barrel and Brent gains 2.4% to $86.22.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
0841 ET - U.S. natural gas futures are steady after recent declines on a milder weather outlook and soft LNG feedgas flows. "Natural gas appears to have found some footing as the market awaits a full return to service of the Freeport LNG terminal as well as more heat for the south and west next week," Gary Cunningham of Tradition Energy says in a note. The Nymex August contract will need "significant help" from the weather to get back toward the $3 level, "but the freefall towards $2.70 looks to have been belayed at least for now," he adds. Natural gas is up 0.1% at $2.861/mmBtu.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
0834 ET - Central-bank buying is expected to provide a price floor for gold despite pressure from expectations of a hawkish Federal Reserve, according to Goldman Sachs. Demand remains strong, with the bank estimating purchases of 81 metric tons in May and a three-month average of 67 tons a month, well above the pre-2022 average of 17 tons. "We continue to see elevated central bank gold accumulation as a multi-year trend, as central banks diversify their reserves to hedge geopolitical and financial risks," Goldman analysts say, forecasting average purchases of 50 tons a month this year and 40 tons a month next year. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
0627 ET - Palm oil ended lower in Asian trading. Profit-taking activity ahead of the weekend likely limited gains despite U.S.-Iran tensions continuing to drive up oil prices, Kenanga Futures writes in a note. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for October delivery fell 12 ringgit to 4,594 ringgit a ton. (kimberley.kao@wsj.com)
0356 ET - Gold prices slip below $4,000 a troy ounce and are on track for a weekly decline of more than 3%. Escalating hostilities between the U.S. and Iran are fueling fears that higher energy prices could keep inflation elevated and prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. "The recent price action suggests that markets are placing greater weight on the prospect of higher-for-longer U.S. interest rates than on gold's traditional safe-haven demand, leaving gold vulnerable unless geopolitical risks translate into a broader deterioration in financial market sentiment," says Soojin Kim from MUFG. In early trading, New York gold futures rise 0.1% to $3,996.80 an ounce. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
2332 ET - Copper prices are lower in early Asian trading and expected to stay range bound in the near term, according to Nanhua Futures analysts. While China's macro economy remains stable, they note a tight global supply-demand dynamic may send prices higher. From a technical perspective, analysts see support at $13,500 a ton. Investors are closely monitoring Chile's economic performance as the world's top copper producer, the analyst say. Currently, the three-month LME copper contract is down 0.7% at $13,504.00 a ton. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)
2303 ET - Iron ore rises as inventories fall. The pressure on supply is expected to ease as overseas iron-ore shipments to China fall from their peak in 1H, Nanhua Futures says in a research note. Chinese steel mills' losses have widened and there are increasing maintenance plans, weighing on short-term demand, it says. As both demand and supply are relatively weak, iron-ore inventory at Chinese ports have continued to decline in recent weeks. The most-traded iron ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rises 0.6% to 763.0 yuan a ton.(sherry.qin@wsj.com)
2246 ET - Palm oil falls in early Asian trading, weighed by rising inventories and profit-taking, AmInvestment Bank says in a note. Estimates from the Southern Peninsular Palm Oil Millers' Association also suggest that July 1-15 production rose 3.7%, adding to concerns over higher supply and weighing on palm oil prices. AmInvestment Bank expects prices to face resistance at 4,630 ringgit a ton and find support at 4,565 ringgit a ton. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for October delivery is 24 ringgit lower at 4,582 ringgit a ton. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
2144 ET - Regis Resources's share price falls 8.0% to a one-month low of 5.67 Australian dollars as the gold miner's FY27 guidance disappoints. Regis expects to produce 360,000-400,000 oz of gold in FY27. RBC Capital Markets says the midpoint of the range misses its 408,000 oz forecast by some 6.9%. "The slightly softer than expected FY27 production guidance is due to Tropicana with lower open pit production at Havana resulting in a higher proportion of lower grade stockpile mill feed," analyst James Redfern says. Regis's forecast all-in sustaining costs of A$2,990-A$3,390/oz is around 8% higher than FY26. This reflects lower production at the Tropicana mine, higher diesel costs and industry inflation. RBC had expected AISC of A$2,906/oz in FY27. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2037 ET - Gold rises in Asian trade but still remains below the psychologically-important $4,000 mark. While softer-than-expected U.S. inflation data eased bets of the Federal Reserve tightening its monetary policy and initially supported bullion by weighing on the dollar and bond yields, that momentum has faded as yields recovered slightly, says Critical Metals' Tony Sage in commentary. Still, continued central bank gold-buying should be able to limit risk of declines over the longer term, he adds.Spot gold rises 0.2% to $3,983.94 a troy ounce.(megan.cheah@wsj.com)
1919 ET - There were hits and misses in Ora Banda Mining's 4Q production report, according to Macquarie. It liked Ora Banda's cash-funded growth. Ora Banda generated A$121 million of operating cash flow and A$36 million of free cash flow in the quarter after investing in its projects. Still, Macquarie was downbeat about its all-in sustaining costs in 4Q and higher FY27 capex. AISC of A$3,870/oz was 16% above the bank's forecast. Macquarie lowers its FY26 Ebitda forecast by 4%. Its FY27 Ebitda view falls 14% to reflect lower production, higher costs and higher capex signaled in the FY27 guidance. Macquarie retains an "outperform" call on Ora Banda, which ended Thursday at A$1.08. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 17, 2026 09:15 ET (13:15 GMT)
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