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

1926 ET - Amplitude Energy's East Coast Supply Project had become less certain after recent drilling failures. But a deal to buy the Artisan natural-gas field has shored up concerns. Amplitude is buying Artisan from Beach Energy for A$58.3 million upfront and a production royalty. Macquarie said the ECSP, and specifically volumes to feed the Athena gas plant, had increasingly become dependent on exploration success. "Artisan transaction mitigates this substantially," Macquarie says. Other benefits to Amplitude include an ability to blend Artisan gas with volumes from the Annie field to bring carbon-dioxide levels within a range required by pipelines. The Artisan field is also only 10 miles or so to Amplitude's existing pipeline infrastructure, Macquarie has an outperform call on Amplitude. Its price target rises 7.1% to A$3.00/share. Amplitude ended Monday at A$1.715. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

1914 ET - Beach Energy's sale of the Artisan natural-gas discovery to Amplitude Energy is a sensible win-win deal, says Macquarie. That's rare in the oil and gas sector. Beach is prioritizing value over volume, Macquarie says. Benefits of the deal to Beach go beyond the A$130 million post-tax deal value. "This transaction allows Beach to divest a capex-intensive asset to a party that can achieve stronger returns," Macquarie says. Capital that would have been allocated to the Otway basin, including drilling the La Bella 2 well, can now be used on acquisitions. Macquarie raises its price target by 13% to A$0.88/share, although it retains an underperform call. Beach ended Monday at A$1.115. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

1201 ET - Crude prices have failed to push significantly higher since the war in Iran began largely because China has reduced its imports, effectively freeing up supply for other buyers, says Michelle Brouhard from Kpler. China, she says, is highly opportunistic: When prices rise too far, it reduces imports, draws down inventories, and waits for cheaper levels. "China has took its foot off at the gas on imports," the head of policy and geopolitical risk says. "So I think these prices just got high enough that they thought we'll just draw down our inventories." According to Brouhard, based on current global inventory levels, the fair value for oil would be much higher, around $130-$140 a barrel. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

1043 ET - Oil prices have only limited room to fall until the Strait of Hormuz fully reopens and tanker traffic resumes. "There's no way to have a drop in prices if the strait is not open," says Michelle Brouhard, head of policy and geopolitical risk at Kpler. "You need boats that actually go back into the strait to pick up cargo to take it back out…You need the round trip of the strait reopened." An agreement to reopen the waterway could bring Brent crude into the $85-$90 a barrel range, though prices are unlikely to fall below $80 a barrel, she says. Inventory losses and roughly 1 billion barrels of missed Middle East production continue to underpin prices, and once the strait reopens, inventories will still need to be replenished. "There's still going to be some sort of geopolitical risk that needs to remain in the price," Brouhard says. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

1035 ET - Celestica's guidance for the next two years is likely leaning on the conservative side, according to Todd Coupland of CIBC. "Celestica's message at CIBC's Technology & Innovation Conference sharpened our conviction that 2026 and 2027 guidance likely remains too low," the analyst says. He points to strong demand from hyperscalers and digital-native customers that is running ahead of the Toronto-based company's expectations. He says that visibility now stretches out to 2029, and the only real bottleneck is extreme component shortages, with some lead times hitting 99 weeks, even worse than during the pandemic. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)

1015 ET - Oil futures are lower on optimism about a U.S.-Iran agreement that could reopen the Strait of Hormuz to tanker traffic, but the market remains cautious. "With the two sides still publicly contradicting each other on basic facts, the distance to a binding agreement is considerable," Ahmad Assiri of Pepperstone says in a note. For energy markets, the main concern is uncertainty about the strait. "A verified deal delivers meaningful downside in crude; a breakdown or simply a prolonged stalemate keeps the geopolitical risk premium firmly embedded." WTI is down 5.1% at $91.67 a barrel. Brent falls 4.9% to $98.46. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0858 ET - The bulk of residents in Canada's oil-rich province of Alberta want to remain part of Canada, says one of the first polls to emerge since Alberta Premier Danielle Smith set Oct. 19 as a date for a referendum on the jurisdiction's future within the country. Angus Reid Institute says 61% of Albertans would choose to remain in Canada, while 36% indicate they believe Smith should begin the process to hold a binding referendum on separation from Canada. Smith unveiled the planned vote last week, under pressure from the wing of her United Conservative Party that either supports separation or is sympathetic to the cause. Over half of respondents, 51%, say the question to be posed on the Oct. 19 ballot -- essentially, a referendum-on-a-referendum -- is too confusing. (paul.vieira@wsj.com, @paulvieira)

0856 ET - Higher commodities prices buoyed corporate operating earnings in the first quarter, the latest data from Statistics Canada shows. Operating profit among the country's corporations hit C$209.9 billion in 1Q, up 2% on quarter and 3.4% year-over-year. Gains were largely driven by nonfinancial industries, with companies in oil and gas extraction leading with a 35% on-month jump in operating profit collectively to C$3 billion as crude oil prices spiked amid the conflict in the Middle East. The mining sector notched a 11% rise in operating profit to C$299 million due mainly to higher prices for gold and copper, Statistics Canada says. In contrast, earnings in the manufacturing industry fell 1.7% to C$19.7 billion. Operating profit for financial industries edged up 0.8% to C$99.7 billion. (robb.stewart@wsj.com; @RobbMStewart)

0834 ET - The dollar extends falls on optimism about prospects of a deal between the U.S. and Iran that could potentially result in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices fall, with Brent crude last down 6% to $97.32. The safe-haven dollar falls both because of investors' sentiment improving and because the currency often tracks moves in oil prices as the U.S. is a net oil exporter. Caution remains, however, as President Trump said in a Truth Social post on Sunday that he was in no hurry to agree to a deal. Trading volumes are low due to a public holiday in the U.S. and holidays across most of Europe. The DXY dollar index falls 0.3% to a 10-day low of 98.927. (jessica.fleetham@wsj.com)

0817 ET - The German automotive and textile industries continue to be a particularly affected by job declines amid a broader downturn in industry jobs in the country, according to a report from EY. The number of employees in the automotive sector fell 4% last year and as much as 15% since 2019, the report says. The textile industry had even more drastic declines, with 22% of jobs lost since 2019. Meanwhile, only two sectors have remained bucking this decline, with jobs in chemical and pharmaceutical industries slightly higher since 2019, the report finds. (aimee.look@wsj.com)

0737 ET - The cost of insuring euro-denominated credit against default stays steady at lower levels amid progress toward a U.S.-Iran peace deal that could result in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Nevertheless, President Trump said in a Truth Social post on Sunday that he was in no hurry to agree to a deal and that both sides "must take their time and get it right." The iTraxx Europe Crossover index, which tracks euro high-yield credit default swaps, trades at 274bps, having fallen by six basis points to that level on Friday, S&P Global Market Intelligence data show. The iTraxx Europe Main index, which tracks euro investment-grade CDS, is steady at 55 basis points. (jessica.fleetham@wsj.com)

0700 ET - The euro, sterling and perceived riskier currencies such as the Australian dollar all rise versus a weaker U.S. dollar amid prospects of a U.S.-Iran peace deal, which could lead to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices fall while risk appetite picks up. The dollar falls due to its safe-haven qualities and because it often mirrors moves in oil prices as the U.S. is a net oil exporter. The euro rises 0.3% to a six-day high of $1.1649, LSEG data show. Sterling rises 0.5% to an 11-day high of $1.3496, while the Australian dollar gains 0.6% to $0.7166. Among emerging-market currencies, the South African rand and Mexican peso both gain versus the U.S. dollar. (jessica.fleetham@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 25, 2026 19:26 ET (23:26 GMT)

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