The latest Market Talks covering Basic Materials. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
0816 GMT - Antofagasta's 2027 guidance implies no growth to the original guidance it gave for 2026, Ben Davis and David Monus at RBC say in a note. Earlier this year, Antofagasta cut its 2026 copper production outlook from the 650,000-700,000 metric tons that it had initially expected to 625,000-655,000. Its 2027 guidance is below the initial range, and also was given despite the expectation of a pickup in grades at the Los Pelambres mine, and the expected commissioning of a second concentrator at Centinela, they say. Shares are down 6.5% at 3,341 pence. (aimee.look@wsj.com)
0447 GMT - ANTAM (Persero), also known as Aneka Tambang, should see margin for its gold segment improve in 2H, UOB Kay Hian analysts say in a research report. Lower inventory exposure, broader sourcing in Indonesia, and higher gold prices should improve the segment's margin, the analyst says. After the correction in gold prices in 2Q, margins were pressured by around 6 tons of inventory, but management has since reduced inventory targets to 15 days each for finished goods and raw materials. The brokerage lifts its 2026 earnings forecast for the Indonesian miner by 80.8%. It raises the stock's target price to 4,100.00 rupiah from 3,500.00 rupiah with unchanged buy rating. Shares are 4.6% lower at 2,910.00 rupiah. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)
0227 GMT - Iron ore prices are lower in early Asian trade amid unattractive steel mills margins and falling steel output. Meanwhile, China's imports of iron ore continue to rise on year, keeping the domestic supply ample, Nanhua Futures says in a research note. As Chinese manufacturing sector's steel demand slightly recovers lately, 3Q may be the weakest season in terms of steel use, it says. Both Chinese and overseas steel demand may be concentrated in the later part of the year, it adds. The most actively traded January iron ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange drops 0.5% to 671.00 yuan a ton. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)
2237 GMT - Evolution Mining needs to ramp up production to meet annual guidance after missing expectations in 1Q due to power issues affecting its Mungari and Red Lake gold mines. Macquarie says production of 153,600 oz of gold in 1Q represents 22% of the midpoint of annual guidance. 1Q gold output was 5% below consensus expectations, although copper production beat. "Red Lake grid instability appears to be transitory, while the transmission lines were getting connected to a nearby third party, while at Mungari the power problems appear more structural," Macquarie says. Evolution is investigating having a battery at Mungari to offset any grid interruptions, but this could take 12-18 months to commission, it adds. Macquarie has a "neutral" call on Evolution, and lowers its price target by 4%, to A$13.00/share. Evolution ended Wednesday at A$12.55. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2233 GMT [Dow Jones]--Paladin Energy's FY27 guidance still looks achievable to Macquarie -- if the uranium miner can sustain recovery improvements seen through September and ore grades improve. Output at Paladin's Langer Heinrich mine in Namibia was weaker than expected in 1Q. Paladin produced 1.0 million lbs of U308, a common compound of uranium. Still, the company maintained output guidance of 5.1 million-5.6 million lbs of U3O8 in FY27. Macquarie retains an outperform call on Paladin, but cuts its price target by 6.1% to A$13.00/share. Paladin ended Wednesday at A$7.28. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2231 GMT - It looks less likely that aspiring uranium miner Deep Yellow can fully fund a final investment decision on its Tumas project in 4Q, given the current state of the equities market, says Macquarie. "Even if this were possible, the dilution from these share price levels would be excessive," Macquarie says. It thinks a delay is justified to preserve long-term value. Such a move would likely be taken positively by the market, Macquarie adds. It has an "outperform" call on Deep Yellow, and trims its price target by 2.5%, to A$1.95/share. Deep Yellow ended Wednesday at A$0.865, its lowest level since April 2025. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
1807 GMT - Gold and silver futures settle lower after U.S. consumer price inflation for September landed above estimates, increasing market expectations for a Fed interest-rate rise this month and pushing the U.S. dollar higher. Continuing attacks in the Persian Gulf add pressure by lifting oil prices, "sustaining the risk that energy-led inflation complicates the Fed's path," Kaynat Chainwala of Kotak Neo says in a note. Front month gold settles down 1.6% in New York at $4,084.80 a troy ounce. Silver falls 6.1% to $55.55 a troy ounce, its lowest close in almost 11 months. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1645 GMT - Toronto's indexes are down in lock-step with U.S. markets digesting a hotter-than-expected September U.S. CPI. Canada's S&P/TSX Composite Index is down 1.1% at 35577.54 and the blue-chip S&P/TSX 60 declines 1% to 2105.71, but are still both up 12% and 13% year-to-date, respectively. Metals and materials stocks are the major drags of the session, followed by tech and producer manufacturing. These are offsetting minor gains in retail and health tech stocks. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1624 GMT - Bitcoin and gold are two sides of the same coin, according to Steve Neamtz of Yorkville America in a note. He says bitcoin as 'digital gold" simply doesn't have the benefit of time in the market to determine how it may behave in the course of financial stress, whereas gold has had thousands of years to "demonstrate its value as a reserve asset." But both will work for investors attempting to hedge against currency debasement. "None of this requires picking a side," he says. "Central banks are buying gold on infrastructure that already exists; institutions are buying bitcoin on infrastructure still being built--the same debasement logic, two different stages." Bitcoin falls 1.9%, while gold is off 1.6%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1300 GMT - Gold futures extend early losses after September core U.S. CPI comes in higher than expected, pushing up yields and the U.S. dollar. Factors behind dollar gains include geopolitical developments on the war front and the IMF chief saying U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's growth plans aren't enough to tame surging deficits and the mounting debt pile, Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital says in a note. "Ironically, these concerns provide another reason to buy precious metals." Gold for December delivery is down 1.2% in New York at $4,126.50 a troy ounce. Silver falls 2.7% to $57.92 a troy ounce. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
0845 GMT - The big question around European consumer staples during third-quarter results is whether companies can maintain volume momentum while raising prices, analysts at Barclays say in a note. Across food and personal care, the analysts say they have increased third-quarter growth assumptions by around 30 basis points on average. The largest upward revisions in price growth have been for Henkel, Magnum Ice Cream and Danone. L'Oreal, Unilever and Magnum Ice Cream will likely be the strongest examples of balanced growth in the sector, they add. (aimee.look@wsj.com)
0845 GMT - Saudi Arabian and U.A.E. chemical producers face a test of their ability to redirect exports as disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continue, S&P Global Ratings says. Company results should provide evidence of how effectively producers have used alternative routes despite logistical constraints, according to the ratings firm. Solid chemical products are generally easier to store or reroute than liquids, which require specialized storage and transportation infrastructure. S&P says the conflict has disrupted regional chemical exports and production, making geographic diversification an important factor in companies' credit resilience.
Comments