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

0659 ET - Palm oil ended higher, as the July Malaysian Palm Oil Board report showed growth in both production and demand in origin countries, noted Nanhua Futures. Prices are likely to find some support as valuation drops, alongside its previous pullback and long-term supply contraction, they say. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for November delivery rose 12 ringgit to 4,819 ringgit a ton, according to LSEG. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)

0421 ET - Gold rises as investors pare back bets of an imminent interest-rate hike. In morning European trade, New York gold futures are 0.5% higher at $4,458.20 a troy ounce. The precious metal continues a two-week advance after weaker U.S. retails sales and softer consumer sentiment weighed on the dollar and reduced expectations of a rate hike, MUFG's Soojin Kim writes. Higher interest rates make non-yielding assets like gold less attractive. "Wednesday's Fed minutes, U.S. economic data and developments around Hormuz will be key drivers of gold, particularly through their impact on rate expectations," she adds.(adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0302 ET - Comex gold futures' bullish setup is still intact, based on the daily chart, RHB Retail Research's Aiman Kamil Bin Ahmad Shauqi says in a report. The commodity's fresh bullish candlestick pattern posted on Friday suggests selling pressure has tapered, the analyst notes. Since bulls have returned to the "driver's seat," the precious metal could resume its bullish trajectory toward initial resistance at $4,650 per ounce, the analyst says. Also, both 20- and 50-day simple moving averages continue to trend upward, providing support for the bullish technical setup, the analyst adds. Spot gold is 0.6% higher at $4,402.64 per ounce. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)

2200 ET - BlueScope Steel is stepping up its capital-management plans and "has upped the ante on efficiency," says Macquarie. The steelmaker's EBIT outlook for 1H FY 2027 is 11% above market expectations, while value-added sales are also strong, it says. The bank reiterates an outperform rating and a A$35.95 target on the stock. The key driver of BlueScope's strong earnings guidance is North America, where a debottlenecking project at North Star is delivering early benefits, says Macquarie. A turnaround of the Buildings and Coated Products North America business is also gaining traction, it says. Shares are down 1.5% at A$33.19. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

2016 ET - BlueScope Steel's 1H FY27 earnings before interest and taxes, or EBIT, guidance of 860 million to 960 million Australian dollars is above consensus of A$812 million "but lower than some estimates and implied spot scenarios," says Barrenjoey. The steelmaker's 2H FY26 EBIT of A$716 million is slightly above the top end of guidance of A$620 million-A$700 million, and 3% above consensus, Barrenjoey says. The Australian bank expects comments from management, particularly on Australian Steel Products and North Star, could drive the stock Monday. Shares are down 2.3% early in Sydney at A$32.92.