The latest Market Talks covering Commodities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.

0316 GMT - Iron ore prices are flat as steel mills struggle with low profitability. With 90% of Chinese steel mills operating at a loss, they remain cautious about iron ore procurement and keep inventories low, Tongguan Jinyuan Futures says in a research note. Meanwhile, overseas iron ore shipments remain elevated, keeping supply abundant, it says. Iron ore will maintain its strong supply and weak demand fundamentals over the next month with prices likely in the range between 600 yuan and 735 yuan a ton. The most actively traded January iron ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange is flat at 683.5 yuan a ton. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

0241 GMT - Palm oil rises amid bargain hunting, with the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for December delivery up 48 ringgit at 4,640 ringgit a ton. Market participants will monitor the upcoming Malaysian Palm Oil Board report due Monday afternoon for fresh cues, AmInvestment Bank says in a note. Concerns over rising inventories may limit further gains ahead of the data, it says. AmInvestment Bank expects crude palm oil futures to find support at 4,580 ringgit a ton and face resistance at 4,675 ringgit a ton.(yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0126 GMT - Copper prices are higher in early Asian trading hours, supported by tight mine supply and low inventories, CICC Wealth Futures Research Institute analysts write in a note. However, elevated prices continue to weigh on downstream demand, while spot market transactions remain subdued despite sellers lowering offers, they say. Prices are likely to remain range-bound at high levels in the near term, with supply tightness and low inventories providing a floor, they add. Investors will watch for a recovery in downstream orders as production resumes. The three-month LME copper contract is up 0.4% at $14,595.50 a ton.(jiahui.huang@wsj.com; @ivy_jiahuihuang)

0032 GMT - Gold rises in early Asian trade, as markets weigh a pullback in oil prices. Softer energy prices could temper inflation concerns and ease pressure on yields, providing some support to gold, Infinox's Thadeu Dos Santos says in a note. However, the interest rate backdrop remains challenging and leaves the precious metal vulnerable to renewed selling pressure, the regional director says. Investors will focus on this week's U.S. inflation data for clues on the Fed's next interest rate move. A higher-interest-rate environment typically weighs on non-interest yielding assets such as gold. Spot gold is up 0.4% at $4,209.39 an ounce.(amanda.lee@wsj.com)

2135 GMT - Jefferies raises price targets on a slew of Australian copper miners after a taking a more bullish view of the outlook for the industrial metal. Jefferies increases its long-term copper price to US$6/lb, from US$5/lb. The bank's price target on Sandfire Resources rises 9% to A$25.50/share, putting it at a bigger premium to Friday's close of A$22.01. Jefferies also lifts its price target on 29Metals by 17% to A$0.38/share and on Aeris Resources by 4% to A$0.68/share. 29Metals and Aeris ended last week at A$0.33 and A$0.47, respectively.