Oil Prices Stay Below $100 as Traders Weigh Iran -2-

Oil Holds Near Two-Month Low on U.S.-Iran Diplomatic Hopes After Midterms -- Market Talk

0842 GMT - Oil prices hold near a two-month low after tumbling more than 8% in the previous session on hopes that a Democratic sweep in the U.S. midterm elections could accelerate efforts to end the Iran war. Brent crude is up 0.5% to $95.07 a barrel, while WTI futures tick 0.1% lower at $88.02 a barrel. The elections' outcome could bring greater scrutiny of the conflict and make funding the conflict more difficult, while also prompting opposition from within the Republican Party. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday his party would seek to end the war, citing Congress's control over federal spending. Vice President JD Vance publicly blamed the conflict for Republican losses. However, "how all this plays out is still highly uncertain," analysts at ING say. "The degree and speed to which the oil market has sold off seems to be overdone." (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

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Miners Gain as Oil Prices Ease and Gold Rises -- Market Talk

0839 GMT - London's miners rise in opening trade Thursday after oil prices tumbled and gold continues to rise. Oil prices fell 8% Wednesday in a move that will ease mining costs and help tame rising inflation that could trigger interest rate rises. Higher interest rates weigh on investments and demand, and hurt mining stocks. Gold prices hit a two-week high, aided by a softer dollar and easing Treasury yields. Precious metal miner Hochschild Mining and Fresnillo both rise 5%, while Endeavour Mining gains 6.3%. Anglo American is 2.2% higher while copper miner Antofagasta is up 2.7%.(adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

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Copper Edges Lower, With Data-Center Investment in Focus After U.S. Midterms -- Market Talk

0831 GMT - Copper prices edge lower in the aftermath of the U.S. midterm elections, as investors weigh the potential implications of a Democrat-controlled House for U.S. data-center investment, a key driver of demand for the industrial metal. "Texas, Georgia and Ohio elected Democrat candidates who have pledged to crack down on the building of data centers," analysts at ANZ say. The stakes are particularly high in Texas, which is on track to become the country's largest data-center hub, according to the firm. In early European trading, three-month copper futures on the LME tick 0.1% lower to $13,996 a metric ton. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

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European TTF Gas Slides, Mirroring Oil in Aftermath of Democratic Sweep -- Market Talk

0824 GMT - European natural-gas prices remain under pressure, tracking oil lower on hopes that the U.S. midterm results could increase pressure on the Trump administration to seek a diplomatic resolution to the Iran war. In early trading, the benchmark Dutch TTF contract falls 2% to 86.36 euros a megawatt-hour, extending Wednesday's losses and reaching its lowest level in more than two weeks. Prices had topped 100 euros at the end of October. Underlying market conditions, however, remain tight, with liquefied natural-gas flows from the Middle East still constrained and European storage facilities beginning to draw as the heating season gets underway. The key swing factors for prices will be how quickly LNG exports from the Persian Gulf recover and how cold the weather proves across Europe, which will determine the pace of storage withdrawals and the extent of competition for available supplies. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

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Gold Climbs to Two-Week High on Softer Dollar, Falling Treasury Yields After U.S. Midterms -- Market Talk

0813 GMT - Gold futures rose to a two-week high in early European trading, supported by a weaker dollar and declining Treasury yields after the Democratic sweep of Congress in the U.S. midterm elections raised expectations of tighter fiscal discipline. New York futures climb 1.5% to $4,132.50 a troy ounce, with falling oil prices also lending support. Despite the rebound, the near-term outlook for the precious metal remains challenging. "Inflation concerns continue to support expectations for tighter monetary policy," analysts at ING say. "But much depends on developments in the Middle East and what they mean for energy markets." Meanwhile, silver futures rise 0.4% to $52.52 an ounce, while platinum is up 1.3% to $1,517.10 an ounce.(giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

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Brent Extends Declines on Hopes Mideast War Will End Sooner -- Market Talk

0647 GMT - Brent oil prices extended their losses to below $94 per barrel in Asia as markets reckoned that the Democratic sweep in the U.S. midterms could increase pressure to end the war in the Middle East, says Samara Hammoud, a currency strategist at CBA. A Democratic Congress will likely intensify scrutiny of the conflict involving Iran, including its objectives, costs, casualties and legal basis, she says. However, the election result is unlikely to bring an immediate end to the conflict. Expect themarket focus to soon shift away from the post‑election theme and back towards solid U.S. economic data and elevated inflation, she adds. (james.glynn@wsj.com; @JamesGlynnWSJ)

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Copper Rises as Markets Digest U.S. Midterm Election Results -- Market Talk

0321 GMT - Copper rises in early Asian trade. There are competing forces influencing the market as investors digest the U.S. midterm election results and weigh them against the supportive long-term fundamentals of the base metal, says Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo, in a note. Markets are concerned about potentially greater political and regulatory scrutiny around AI and data centers that could raise questions about future investment. The long-term outlook remains positive for copper prices, but the election outcome could trigger a prolonged period of consolidation as traders reassess tariff risks, inventory flows and the U.S. demand outlook, Hansen adds. The three-month LME copper contract is 0.6% higher at $14,093.00 a ton. (kimberley.kao@wsj.com)

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Palm Oil Falls, Tracking Softer Soybean Oil, Crude Oil Prices -- Market Talk

0241 GMT - Palm oil falls in Asian trading, weighed by softer soybean oil on the Chicago Board of Trade overnight and crude oil prices, says David Ng, a trader at Kuala Lumpur-based Iceberg X. Concerns about Malaysian inventories reaching record highs further dampen market sentiment, he adds. Ng pegs support at 4,400 ringgit a ton and resistance at 4,600 ringgit a ton. He expects market direction to remain sensitive to competing vegetable oils and energy prices. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for January delivery is down 47 ringgit at 4,449 ringgit a ton. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

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Elevated Short Interest in Teck, BHP Signals Potential Opportunity -- Market Talk

0152 GMT - Short interest across some top miners has risen modestly over the past 20 weeks, Jefferies says. It thinks that reflects moves between individual stocks rather than a broadbased rise in bearish positioning. "Nevertheless, company-specific extremes are noteworthy," it says. Teck's short interest, at 2.97% of its free float, is around the 93rd percentile of its five-year range, says the bank. In BHP's ADRs, short interest is 0.76%--which might appear modest, but ranks near the 97th percentile of its own range over the same period, Jefferies says. Those levels point "to a potential contrarian opportunity given both names have outperformed in the periods following extremely elevated short interest," says the bank. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

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Australia's Grain Harvest Outlook Better Than Anticipated -- Market Talk

0137 GMT - Australia is likely to produce more grains and oilseeds in the 2026-27 harvest than initially expected, says Rabobank. It forecasts an annual crop of 63 million metric tons, "down just 8% from last year's strong harvest, which included record barley and canola volumes." It notes that ASX January 2027 and 2028 contract prices have recently fallen, albeit less than CBOT prices. An improvement in grain supply globally has been pressuring prices lower, it says. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 05, 2026 12:13 ET (17:13 GMT)