The latest Market Talks covering Energy and Utilities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.

1136 ET - The decline in crude oil prices, with WTI testing $55 a barrel for the second time in a month, is keeping U.S. upstream oil and gas companies "on edge and trimming any fat in their operations," Alex Hodes of StoneX says in a note. "Producers are back to cutting back on frac crews and drilling crews as prices returned to bearish territory last week." Baker Hughes reported a loss of four oil rigs to 479 last week, the lowest since the end of January and down 20 from a year earlier. "With higher OPEC+ supply growth this month, next, and presumably for the next several months, expect upstream activity in the U.S. to get trimmed back further," Hodes adds. WTI is down 3% at $56.55 a barrel. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1056 ET - Plans by OPEC+ to increase oil production by 411,000 barrels a day in June, are pressuring CBOT corn. Corn is often linked to what's happening in the oil market due to the use of ethanol for gasoline blends. Soybeans are also exposed because of biofuels. "Bottom line to me is that the next leg lower comes from the physical market being caught long from too much oil in the market as positioning to me is very short," says Scott Shelton of United ICAP in a note. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)

0834 ET - Crude futures are lower after OPEC+ agrees to bring back another 411,000 barrels a day of production in June, further accelerating the unwinding of cuts. The increase "may do little to crimp the actual volumes of chronic overproducers, with non-OPEC impacts rather the ones to watch over the next quarter if WTI is kept at current prices," Neil Crosby of Sparta Commodities says in a note. Meanwhile, refiners are coming out of maintenance with strong margins, while U.S. and global/OECD crude stock patterns "typically move into seasonal draws soon," he adds. "One hope may be to spur oil demand and economic growth during this trade war." WTI is down 2% at $57.10 a barrel and Brent is off 1.8% at $60.16.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0708 ET - Oil prices have fallen so much that U.S. producers are likely to cut back and could turn to layoffs, Apollo Global Management economist Torsten Slok writes. He notes that a May survey by the Dallas Fed found that U.S. producers typically want to see oil selling for $61 to $70 a barrel to ensure profitability on new wells. On the Nymex, crude finished last week at $58.29 a barrel. If oil "were to continue to hover in its recent $60- to $64-per-barrel range, further contraction in payrolls is likely," the Dallas Fed found in its survey. (matt.grossman@wsj.com; @mattgrossman)

0505 ET - The Spanish government will work "with prudence and rigor" to find out what caused the blackout that left much of Spain and Portugal without electricity on April 28, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says. "Our willingness is firm, we want to get to the bottom of what caused this incident," Sanchez tells the annual meeting of the Catalan business group Cercle d'Economia in Barcelona. (cristina.gallardo@wsj.com)

2254 ET - Some Singapore sectors are likely to enjoy healthy earnings growth despite the ongoing trade war, namely real-estate agencies, construction, capital markets and power businesses, Phillip Securities Research's Paul Chew says in a commentary. Such sectors can outperform in a muted economic environment with attractive dividend yields, the head of research says. Also, returning more capital has supported the performance of government-linked companies, including Singtel, Sembcorp Industries, DBS and Keppel, Chew says. The brokerage remains positive on banks, Chew adds. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)

1955 ET - Oil futures slip in early Asian session after OPEC+ on Saturday agreed to increase output in June for a second consecutive month. The additional production of 411,000 barrels a day following a similar increase in May is perceived as a punishment for overproducing nations such as Iraq and Kazakhstan. Also, OPEC+ leader, Saudi Arabia, has warned that it could amplify a historic shift in policy and deliver further production hikes unless those nations fall in line, ANZ Research analysts say in a research report. Front-month WTI crude oil futures are down 3.9% at $56.01/bbl; front-month Brent crude oil futures are 3.6% lower at $59.07/bbl. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 05, 2025 12:20 ET (16:20 GMT)

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