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

0259 GMT - The finalization of Orica's North American ammonium nitrate supply arrangements for FY 2027 is "a slight positive," according to RBC Capital Markets. Yet it is only for one year and there will be a negligible impact on margins, the broker says. On the other hand, the delay in the sale of the Deer Park land is "a slight negative," says RBC. It expects the land will eventually be sold, and Orica says the change in timing doesn't affect its underlying business operations. RBC keeps an outperform rating. Its price target on Orica is A$27.00/share. The stock is up 2.3% at A$23.37/share. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0240 GMT - The rejected Gold Fields bid for Northern Star puts somewhat of a floor under the Australian miner's share price, says Macquarie. That's because it shows clear corporate interest in the company as a whole, the bank says. "Perhaps the bid comes from an African gold company which is happy to look-through the short-term risks of NST (management/board changes, and KCGM ramp-up risk) and is keen to diversify away from higher-jurisdiction risk countries for increased Australian gold exposure," Macquarie says. It notes that Northern Star trades at a roughly 6% discount to Gold Fields based on valuation. Macquarie has a neutral rating and A$22.50/share target on Northern Star. Shares are up 8.1% at A$23.91. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0211 GMT - Malaysian palm oil stocks could see an attractive entry opportunity following their recent pullback, driven by a strong 2H earnings outlook and firmer CPO prices during the high-production season, Public Investment Bank analyst Chong Hoe Leong says in a note. However, regulatory uncertainty in Indonesia could remain a concern for plantation companies with significant exposure, including SD Guthrie, Kuala Lumpur Kepong and Genting Plantations, he notes. The impact of Indonesia's new agrarian reform law remains pending on landholding limits, conflict resolution and the powers of a new land-reform agency. Public IB maintains an overweight rating on the Malaysian plantations sector, pegging Sarawak Plantation and TA Ann as top picks. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0207 GMT - Asian currencies broadly weaken against the dollar. The global backdrop remains challenging for regional currencies, as elevated oil prices and high global yields continue to reinforce each other, MUFG Bank's Lloyd Chan says in a report. Middle East tensions are high, with no clear resolution to the disruption along the Strait of Hormuz nor when oil supply can be normalized, he adds. The U.S. dollar is 0.3% higher at 157.72 yen and 0.5% higher at 1360.60 won, while the Australian dollar is 0.1% lower at US$0.7018, LSEG data show. (amanda.lee@wsj.com)

0146 GMT - Tenaga Nasional's 2Q gas cost could potentially surpass the 4Q peak, suggesting concerns about higher fuel costs could persist into 2027, Maybank IB analyst Tan Chi Wei says in a note. However, the risk of Tenaga bearing additional costs through lower fuel-adjustment surcharges next year is likely low, he reckons. Tenaga is expected to absorb a one-off 120 million ringgit-150 million ringgit cost in September-December from waived fuel surcharges for selected households, while the fuel-adjustment mechanism remains intact. Gas costs could rise further in 2Q 2027 if Brent remains around $100 a barrel, while coal prices remain a key uncertainty given their larger share of power generation, he adds. Maybank maintains a buy rating on Tenaga, keeps its target price at 15.70 ringgit. Shares are 0.2% higher at 13.16 ringgit. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0142 GMT - A rejected takeover proposal for Northern Star from Gold Fields values the Australian miner at 8.7x enterprise value/Ebitda based on FY27 estimates, RBC Capital Markets says. That is a 16% premium to peer Evolution Mining, which trades at 7.5x, says RBC. It is a roughly 48% premium to RBC's ASX gold coverage, on 5.9x, the broker says. Northern Star shares are up 8.5% at A$23.98. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0140 GMT - Australia's Macquarie Group gets a new bull at RBC, where analyst Andrei Stadnik sees positive earnings risks from ongoing volatility in commodity markets. Initiating coverage of the stock with an outperform rating, Stadnik includes exposure to commodity prices among the factors drawing him to the financial services provider. He tells clients in a note that operating leverage across asset management and personal banking should underpin mid-to-high single-digit earnings growth into fiscal 2029. With the potential for large sales by Macquarie's asset-management business, Stadnik reckons that a multiple of 17 times fiscal 2028 earnings looks undemanding. RBC puts a target price on the stock of 300.00 Australian dollars. Shares are up 2.1% at A$244.56. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0139 GMT - Macquarie's bull at Jefferies expects materially stronger first-half revenues from the financial group's commodities and global markets unit. Keeping a buy rating on the stock, analyst Andrew Lyons points out that strong trading conditions flagged at July's annual general meeting continued through the remainder of the Australian company's fiscal first half. Lyons tells clients in a note that his first-half net profit forecast sits about 13% ahead of consensus, which he says materially de-risks the second-half skew relative to both market expectations and prior performance. Jefferies raises its target price on the stock by 0.1% to 284.34 Australian dollars. Shares are up 2.0% at A$244.34. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0129 GMT - Insurance Australia Group shakes its bear at Macquarie on the settlement of legal proceedings brought by Credit Suisse. Raising their recommendation to neutral from underperform, one of the investment bank's analysts tells clients that the settlement represents a material derisking event. The analyst writes in a note that residual litigation risk from other proceedings appears minor and that the related overhang on the stock is largely resolved. They don't think that the insurer's half-year dividend will be affected by the settlement. Macquarie raises its recommendation on the stock by 15% to 8.20 Australian dollars. Shares are down 1.2% at A$7.75. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0126 GMT - Yangzijiang Shipbuilding's 2027 order-win outlook appears sanguine, UOB Kay Hian's Roy Chen says in a note, citing comments from the Singapore-listed shipbuilder's management. The company expects its current contract win momentum to extend into 2027, with healthy enquiry pipelines across multiple vessel types, the analyst says. Yangzijiang's 2H profit margins are also likely to be stable versus its "spectacular" 1H performance, thanks to some large contracts, he adds. UOB KH raises its target price to 5.90 Singapore dollars from S$5.30 to factor in a higher price-to-earnings ratio peg due to Yangzijiang's earnings visibility into 1H 2030. UOB KH maintains its buy rating. Shares are flat at S$5.19. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0121 GMT - Indonesia's agrarian reform law may cap Southeast Asian plantation stocks' share-price performance as regulatory uncertainty increases, Maybank analyst Ong Chee Ting says in a note. The law might not trigger an immediate redistribution of productive plantation land, but future landholding limits and rules on existing concessions remain unclear, he says. Further guidance is needed on whether the 20% plasma requirement will apply to existing plantations, he notes, referring to the portion of plantations operated by smallholders. Pending greater clarity, near-term CPO price upside will likely remain limited by strong production and weak exports, despite a more positive outlook for 2027, he reckons. Malaysia-focused plantation companies could be relatively less exposed to the regulatory risks, he adds. Maybank pegs SD Guthrie, Sarawak Oil Palms and Genting Plantations as top buys. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0042 GMT - LG Chem could post a 3Q earnings miss, likely weighed down by its struggling petrochemical business, says NH Investment & Securities' Y.K. Choi and S.W. Ryu. The analysts forecast an operating loss for the company's petrochemical unit for the July-September period amid sluggish demand, with the benefit from U.S. tariff refunds in 2Q tapering off. They estimate the firm's 3Q overall operating profit at about 10 billion won, well below the market consensus forecast of about 187 billion won. Still, they remain positive about sustained sales growth in the company's advanced-material business and its battery affiliate. NH cuts its target price for the stock by 13% to 350,000 won but keeps a buy rating. Shares are 2.8% higher at 259,500 won.