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

0337 GMT - Iron ore prices are lower in early Asian trade, as the metal's fundamental remains soft, Baocheng Futures analysts write in a note. The consumption of iron ore has pricked up from low levels, while steel mills are restocking ahead of the holiday, providing some support to demand, they add. However, persistent weakness in the steel market is limiting the extent of the recovery, they add. Meanwhile, domestic iron ore supply is also rising, they say. High freight rates and pre-holiday restocking could provide some downside support, but with supply remaining elevated, iron ore prices are likely to stay under pressure and trade rangebound, they add. The most actively traded January iron ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange is 0.5% lower at CNY733.5 a ton. (jiahui.huang@wsj.com; @ivy_jiahuihuang)

0244 GMT - Palm oil falls in Asian trading, weighed by declines in soybean oil on the Chicago Board of Trade, says David Ng, a trader at Kuala Lumpur-based Iceberg X. Expectations for higher stock levels and production levels in Malaysian Palm Oil Board demand and supply data for August, due Thursday afternoon, also weigh on price sentiment, he adds. Ng pegs resistance at 5,000 ringgit a ton and support at 4,850 ringgit a ton. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for November delivery is down 50 ringgit at 4,916 ringgit a ton. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0144 GMT - Copper rises in early Asian trade, as supply shortages and tariff fears continue to drive sentiment. "The market remains on tenterhooks as it awaits the Trump administration's decision on applying a 15% tariff on imports of refined metal," ANZ analysts say in a research note. Supply constraints are also propping up prices, as inventories at Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses have fallen to their lowest level since 2024, the analysts note. Benchmark three-month copper futures on the London Metal Exchange are last 0.1% higher at $14,775.00 a ton. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

0050 GMT - Gold is steady in the early Asian trade, as investors await U.S. PPI and CPI data. There is some hope that the impending inflation data will provide some clarity about the Fed's rate path next week, says Peter A. Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at Zaner Metals in a note. Hot inflation prints could drive more hawkish Fed bets, underpinning the dollar and weighing on gold, he adds. Higher rates typically diminish the allure of the non-interest-bearing precious metal. Spot gold is flat at $4,399.41 an ounce.(amanda.lee@wsj.com)

0009 GMT - U.S. steel spreads continue to strengthen for BlueScope Steel, says Jefferies. It says the spot spread for BlueScope's North Star steel plant is up 1% week-on-week at US$848/metric ton. The spread has gained 16% over the past three months, Jefferies says. BlueScope guided to a US$750/ton spread in 1H FY27, says the bank. That "suggests a strong lead into 2H27," given a roughly one-month lag on about 75% of its volume, says the bank. Shares are down 0.8% early in Sydney at 30.87 Australian dollars, alongside a broadbased decline in Australian equities. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

2303 GMT - Westgold Resources' production outlook was broadly in line with expectations, but the gold miner's capex plans weren't. Ord Minnett analyst Paul Kaner says the capital required to reach an output target of 500,000 oz. of gold by FY29 was 40% higher than the market had forecast. "The increase reflects ongoing cost inflation and additional non-mill expansion capital requirements across the portfolio, with the composition of the 500,000 oz production profile having evolved significantly over the past year," Ord Minnett says. It downgrades Westgold to "accumulate," from "buy," and cuts its target price by 11%, to A$6.50/share. Westgold ended Wednesday at A$6.18. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

1947 GMT - U.S. natural gas futures fall for a second consecutive session as the market looks beyond this week's inventory report to cooler weather that's likely to cut demand heading into the shoulder season. The EIA is expected to report a 28 Bcf increase in underground storage for last week, according to a WSJ survey of analysts. That's smaller than the average 52 Bcf injection and would reduce the inventory surplus over the average to 136 Bcf from 160 Bcf the week before. Nymex natural gas settles down 3.2% at $2.822/mmBtu.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1932 GMT - New York-traded diesel futures settle at their highest level since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war and their second highest ever as the flare-up in the U.S.-Iran conflict pushes up crude prices and threatens further supply loss. "Watch diesel harder than crude. That's where the real squeeze lives," Phil Flynn of the Price Futures Group says in a note. Ukrainian attacks on refineries that have led Russia to halt diesel exports, and Persian Gulf disruptions, are keeping prices high, he says. "Russia can't export diesel. The U.S. and India are running flat-out to fill the gap." Nymex diesel settles up 5.1% at $4.8010 a gallon, its highest close since April 28, 2022. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1929 GMT - Livestock futures on the CME close lower, with volume for cutouts of either beef or pork being light, says StoneX in a note. That light volume persists in post-Labor Day trading - although through midday, the USDA reported a big jump in average pork carcass cutout prices, up $7.31 per hundredweight to $100.17 per cwt. The Goldman roll continues today, in which fund traders are seen as rolling short positions over to future months. Lean hog futures closed trading down 0.6% to 74.6 cents a pound, while live cattle futures settled down 0.4% to $2.1825 a pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)

1925 GMT - Oil futures settle at their highest level since May 22 as strikes between the U.S. and Iran escalate and Houthis step up attacks on Saudi oil facilities. The escalation is cause for concern as inventories are low and drawing down and it doesn't look like the U.S. is making any progress with the conflict, says John Deal, managing director of capital markets at Post Oak Group. "I frankly think we're in really risky territory right now," he says, with significant risk of damage to infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. "I wouldn't be surprised, if this conflict doesn't wrap up soon, I think we could be looking at prices over $100 maybe as high as $120." Brent settles up 3.4% at $101.21 a barrel, and WTI rises 3.2% to $96.05. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1857 GMT - Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones are forecasting inventories and average daily production of ethanol to fall back from the prior week. Analysts forecast that stocks could land anywhere from 24 million barrels to 25.24 million barrels, versus 25.04 million barrels reported by the EIA last week. Average daily production is anticipated to land anywhere between 1.085 million barrels and 1.110 million barrels a day, versus 1.110 million barrels a day reported last week. CBOT corn futures closed trading for the day down 1%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)

1844 GMT - Gold futures make small gains despite a rise in Treasury yields after the Treasury Department said it would buy back $6 billion in bonds this week, less than some in the market expected. The dollar weakened, however, which tends to support gold. An easing in Japanese yields and continued central bank buying--with China's central bank adding 20 tons in August--also helped support prices, while the market remains focused on U.S. inflation data later this week, Konstantinos Chrysikos of Kudo.com says in a note. Front month gold settles up 0.5% in New York at $4,416 a troy ounce. Silver gains 2.5% to $67.942 a troy ounce.