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

1133 ET - U.S. natural gas inventories posted their smallest build so far of the current injection season, reducing the surplus over the five-year average to its lowest level in two months. Gas in underground storage increased by 15 billion cubic feet last week to 3,184 Bcf, the EIA reports. The storage build was below the five-year average for the week of 33 Bcf, and smaller than the 21 Bcf estimate in a WSJ survey of analysts. Stocks were 167 Bcf above the 2012-2025 average, compared with a surplus of 185 Bcf the previous week. Nymex natural gas is up 2% at $2.898/mmBtu. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1111 ET -- U.S. natural gas inventories posted their smallest build so far in the current injection season, reducing the surplus over the five-year average to its lowest level in two months. Gas in underground storage increased by 15 billion cubic feet last week to 3,184 Bcf, the EIA reports. The storage build was below the five-year average for the week of 33 Bcf, and smaller than the 21 Bcf estimate in a WSJ survey of analysts. Stocks were 167 Bcf above the 2012-2025 average, compared with a surplus of 185 Bcf the previous week. Nymex natural gas is up 2% at $2.898/mmBtu. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1028 ET - The global pork trade has become more fragmented and competitive since top importer China recovered from the African swine fever supply shock between 2018 and 2021 and reduced its share of global imports, Eva Gocsik, Rabobank's global head of animal protein says in a note. "Trade volumes have stabilized at lower levels since 2024," she says, and "export competition has intensified as suppliers compete across a broader range of destination markets." The EU is likely to gradually lose its leading position in pork exports with the U.S. emerging as the largest global exporter over time, Gocsik adds, although trade tensions between the U.S. and China have temporarily slowed the shift. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1023 ET - Corn futures are lower are rising six straight sessions to three-year highs. "With U.S. production prospects dropping and exports out of the Black Sea essentially shut off, corn is expected to trade higher over time," Doug Bergman of RCM Alternatives says in a note. But near term, "the market is very overbought so anyone buying right now needs to be prepared to ride out a potential large correction that could come at any time." Corn is down 1% at $5.31 1/4 a bushel on CBOT. Soybeans are down 1.1% while wheat gains 0.4% on concerns about Russia-Ukraine escalation.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1002 ET - U.S. natural gas futures are higher with the market looking to weekly storage data due at 10:30 a.m. ET. Analysts in a WSJ survey predict a 21 Bcf storage injection, which would put stocks 173 Bcf above the five-year average, down from a 185 Bcf surplus the previous week. Meanwhile, hotter weather into early September and LNG feedgas demand reaching a two-month high as Freeport and Corpus Christi return to full strength "offer a bullish bias into today's September contract final settlement," Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics says in a note. Nymex natural gas is up 2.4% at $2.911/mmBtu.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0958 ET - Oil futures are higher following three days of declines, with the market watching for progress toward a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The pickup in prices is "underscoring how two-sided the market remains as traders balance diplomatic optimism against limited evidence of a meaningful improvement in physical flows," Kaynat Chainwala of Kotak Neo says in a note. "The path forward hinges on whether the 30- to 60-day corridor timeline holds and physical loadings actually rise, leaving prices vulnerable to sharp reversals on any setback." WTI is up 0.3% at $82.50 a barrel and Brent rises 1.1% at $88.78 a barrel. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0840 ET - Ammonia prices across East of Suez markets have fallen more than 40% from their April peak as weak Indian demand overtakes earlier supply concerns, S&P Global Energy says. The Middle East supplied about 80% of India's ammonia imports in 2025, and conflict-related disruptions earlier this year had pushed ammonia prices delivered to Indian ports to a record $885 a metric ton. By August, prices had fallen to around $500 a ton on both coasts as weaker buying and a sulfur shortage shifted the market from a supply-driven rally to a demand-driven decline. (farhan.rafid@wsj.com)

0748 ET - Oil prices nudge up in afternoon European trade, reversing earlier losses. Brent crude for October delivery rises 0.7% to $88.46 a barrel, while WTI edges up 0.2% to $82.38 a barrel. Market focus has shifted to diplomatic efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz this week, but the physical market remains far from normal, Saxo analyst Ole Hansen writes. "The market is trading the prospect of improving supply conditions well before those improvements have actually materialized." Benchmark Brent prices remain down around 7.5% for the week, as investors hope that talks between Iran and Oman will lead to a partial reopening of the strait. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0652 ET - Palm oil finished the Asia session lower, a move Kenanga Futures attributes to overnight weakness in rival edible oils and subdued demand for exports in August. As palm oil nears parity with soybean oil, its narrowing price advantage has also reduced its competitiveness, softening buying interest, it adds. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for November delivery erased earlier gains to fall 38 ringgit to 4,814 ringgit a ton. (kimberley.kao@wsj.com)

0625 ET - Wheat prices trade at a three-year high as investors grow increasingly wary of a supply shock caused by the deteriorating Black Sea situation. Russian and Ukrainian wheat exports are effectively stalled following a series of strikes on both grain-laden ships and export terminals. A slowing in supply from the region is supporting prices as together Russia and Ukraine account for nearly 30% of global wheat exports, Rabobank's Andrick Payen says. Both countries are seeking other routes for their wheat, but any alternatives "are unlikely to offset the port capacity lost at Odesa and Novorossiysk," Payen writes. Chicago wheat contracts rise 0.1% to $7.49 a bushel after jumping around 5% in the last session. Prices have jumped by around 30% since June. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0414 ET - Natural resource companies are offering cash to investors now, unlike some technology companies that rely on profits far into the future, Ninety One's Head of Natural Resources Paul Gooden writes. The average free-cash-flow yield of companies in Ninety One's natural resources portfolio is currently around 8%, he says. This compares with approximately 4% for the broader equity market, he adds. AI, data centers and electrification all rely on natural resources associated with the "old economy," Gooden says. This offers a potentially supportive backdrop for natural resources stocks, he adds. "The future may be digital, but it will still have to be built, powered and mined," he says. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0346 ET - Copper moves slightly lower in morning European trade after the U.S. dollar strengthened and hit investor appetite, ANZ analysts write. Additionally, there are signs that a supply squeeze might be easing given the premium for spot copper over three-month futures has fallen, they say. However, globally inventories continue to be drawn down, they caution. The market is on edge as it awaits an announcement from the White House on plans for tariffs on imported refined copper, they add. This worry has triggered a flow of copper into the country in recent months. Three-month LME futures fall 0.3% to $14,219 a metric ton.